Reminiscing Memories
by RuthlessGravity
Summary: A thousand years into the future, the recording fragments left behind by Liara T'Soni is pieced together and viewed by millions at a museum of an unknown world. Through Liara's own personal experience, she shares with her audience about the Commander Shepard that history does not write about. Rated M: Violence/Mild Language/Sexual Content
1. An Old Story

_Mass Effect _and characters do not belong to me.

Author's Notes: First experimental introductory chapter on what I hope will expand my personal views on what happened between Shepard and Liara during Mass Effect 3.

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**Chapter 1 — **_An Old Story_

The silence of the void echoed the very peaceful thoughts of dotted stars in the night sky. A blue speckled wall of stars and dust drew across this sky as darkly painted ships zoom underneath it with ease, hoping to arrive at their destinations on time. The towers and sky scrapers that scour the ground fill these voids, offering a glimpse of a new world. A new time. Voices create a symphony of life, advocating the natural days of their lives. Figure's both old and young walk freely down the street's and into doors that welcome them in. White speckle of flakes began to slowly descend upon them all, with only the children looking to the sky in awe. Their faces filled with rosy-red cheeks only smiled as the presences of winter had finally arrived.

Out of all the towers, buildings, and eccentrically built wonders of achievement. One stood silently near the frozen lake, overlooking with a plateau that only stretched forth like a small rotund hand, seeking the comfort of the sky.

In the middle of it, a glimmering shadow of a transparent blue hue of a humanoid stood before a group of men, women, and children. Her face held a smile, but her eyes betrayed the fears that enraptured her. She carried herself well, mannerisms polite, and voice tender as a flower. Her clothing spoke of another time, her words translated into the new language for all to hear.

She was placed here as a memorial of all those who have sacrificed their lives during the darkest day of the galaxy. All those who fought so those of future generations could be free. Administrator's and teachers sought this woman's recording for historical knowledge. These 'Reapers' that harvested and killed millions, trillions was only a mind-boggling thing to comprehend now. In the past, as this woman humbly named Liara described it, everyone was on the brink of extinction. Her home planet, Thessia she described with great sorrow in her voice. It had fallen by these so called machines. Including many homeworlds that she had offered to tell.

With a plethora of information, including many trinkets of knowledge already known. Most - if not - everyone came to visit this slowly decaying hologram for another reason:

Shepard.

History describes this Commander Shepard as a Human male who was born on a human colony. He lived from starship to starship, serving under his parents for a while before moving on to join the Alliance Military. Savior of the Citadel, Eradicator of the Collector's, and the Hero of the Galaxy.

Every known species that lived on to this day have a statue of him found on nearly every homeworld and colony. Some viewed him as a god, other's merely viewed him a lucky man. Though there was no doubt to all that he was the one to have saved their great-great-great-great grandparents from total extinction.

History describes this Commander Shepard as a man who defeated the Reapers.

Liara describes him entirely, provoking much interest in many people who come to visit this holographic recording.

One such person was infected with curiosity, a simple child who tightly held onto her mother's hand as she guided them frantically through the gathering crowd.

"Mama, please, can we stay for one more session?" She asked pleadingly, still leading her through the crowd while her mother resists, only to give in when the lights dimmed. The glass window protecting everyone from the outside elements glowed luminously while the sea of faces looked up to the only reminiscing light emitting. The Liara hologram quietly looked up, her face squinting with distress.

There seemed to be a moment of silence amongst the people who came to visit, wondering if she would tell them all about Commander Shepard again. Some held a jovial excitement that would be shared, other's simply stood in solace, looking up to the glowing blue hue of her image.

Finally, a smile was found amongst her face when she brought her gaze straight up. She did not look down to the crowd, merely over looking them as she stood quietly with her hands behind her back.

"To those who find this recorder. I will now talk about the one person who may have come close to saving us. To the one man who may have very well prevented the stalking ruins that you may have uncovered. His named was Commander Dominic Shepard."

The hologram of Liara continued, talking of what the historical manifests about this 'Commander Shepard' have already discussed, even in greater detail was his background in the military. However, things quickly became interesting when she fell silent and eyes slowly drifting to the floor.

An audible sigh could be heard, reverberating in the very stomachs of those that stood before the hologram.

"Commander Shepard was also a dear friend of mine." Another pause was seen while Liara brought a hand about her face, kneading the side of her head. "He was my bondmate. I loved him very much. I had met him when I was trapped on Therum. I was merely a child back then when he arrived, saving me from possible death by the Geth. I was naive about Shepard, not truly thinking anything about him except that he held some matter of interest to me. He had come into contact with a Prothean Beacon, he held visions. Visions I was eager to see. Each time I saw them, I could see him in those visions."

Below, everyone was quiet, some even took a seat on the grass that welcomed them. The snow outside only grew worse, concerning many that they may have to stay inside until the weather changed. Murmur's and whispers were traded amongst a few family clans, wishing to leave now before the storm had snowed them in. Though one particular family member adamantly refused, pointing out that there was a hotel that they could stay over night had it come to that.

It appeared everyone was more than willing to stay and listen to a story that many of them heard a million times. Continuing, Liara described their time together aboard this Human ship - The Normandy.

"It was an infatuate I had with him. Every time he would visit me near the med bay, he simply wanted to talk. Talk!" She laughed, shaking her head at the nonsense she must have bored him with. "I was not a very social person, most of the time I was in the dirt, digging, sometimes with my hands in search for Prothean artifacts. I rarely had much time to talk with anyone except myself."

The hologram flickered, showing her now sitting on a chair, over looking something that was too a holographic display emitting across her arm. It was somewhat similar to the devices the crowd had, but she referred to the device as a 'omni-tool'. Another display above it was showing an image of Shepard, he was smiling in front of a fish tank.

"I talked about him and his visions, but I went off in same cases that got me in trouble! I would blush every time I talk to him about him like he was an object of my affection. However, he saw passed my embarrassments, my faults and my mistakes. He was in fact interested in me." Looking up and away from the omni-tool, she smiled again, her eyes gliding across the room. No one could quite understand what she was looking at. Some speculated it was Shepard himself! Other's deny it and in fact point out that is was her VI drone - Glyph.

Returning her gaze back on the image of Shepard before her, Liara continued.

"Before we tracked down the rogue Spectre, Saren, on Ilos. I was afraid. Afraid that we would not succeed. That Shepard may die in the mission or that the Reaper's will in fact come the very next morning. All I wanted was to be with him one last time." Her eyes became distant, remembering those moments when they were on the precipice of a dangerous mission. She herself was not use to these things of tactics like running and gunning. She was more used to the quiet atmosphere that the dig sites gave her.

Recounting what happened that night, Liara continued without a moment's hesitation stumbling in her voice.

"I met him in his cabin. We spoke briefly, about us. Wondering if he was still interested me. I never had anyone else before. I was never romantically involved with anyone prior to meeting Shepard. But all those missions and traveling the galaxy. I had the opportunity to know him. To know more about him. Suddenly, he waved a hand at me, signaling me to stop my rambling as he rose quietly up from his chair and walked towards me." The audience could see Liara choking up a bit before she could manage to continue on with the story.

A few of the audience members smiled when she remarked about Shepard's romantic side. Something about that always lifted the spirits of so many who have visited her recordings.

"He took my hand into his own and stood there, smiling as he held my hand for a moment. I noticed that his lips curved slightly with a dimple denting into his soft cheek. I was in awe as to what he was going to say, purely out of the fear that he may very well rejected me. However he did not, and simple said: Liara, I want to be with you."

Hologram-Liara stood up and only smiled when she said those words. The omni-tool of her arm disappeared before the hologram flickered again. Now showing her backside away from the audience as she leaned into a desk.

"By the Goddess, I nearly melt into his arms!" She chirped, turning around to face the audience again. Her arms moved with her words as she continued on. "I kissed him. He did not kiss me. I felt I had a connection with him and if I didn't react, I would simply implode like a dying star! I kissed him passionately, and we stumbled over to his bed where I barely managed to try to take off those science uniforms I had on. It was a mess and I blushed when Shepard told me to calmly reach for his own uniform while he worked on mine."

Of course, Liara had to stop there as she brought her arm, wiping it across her head. "Perhaps I should stop there. Save and store."

The image flickered again, now the audience could clearly see Liara sitting down. Her head buried into the palm of her hands. Curious members who had not seen this hologram before were craning their necks above the rest, or tilting to get a better view of her. Hologram-Liara remained silent as she struggled with what was happening.

Finally, she looked up and nodded to something off screen.

"The last time I witnessed Commander Shepard was aboard the Normandy. We were seeking out remaining pockets of resistances of Geth when we were ambushed by the Collector's. I weaved through the maze of halls. Sparks and fire erupted, wires limping out from the ceiling. People were screaming, it was horrific to see such destruction. This was of course months after what had happened on the Citadel. I was still part of the crew, acting as senior science advisor on Prothean artifacts that we may have come across. Even though there was none that we had stumbled upon. I was there more for Shepard, to make sure he would be okay before I needed to leave for Thessia the following month. Again, I was running, frantically I might add until I saw him placing on his helmet. I placed my own helmet on and was fearing for everyone while the ship continued to be attacked."

She shook her head, a shadowing grieving state surfaced through her expression, only to disappear beneath the hands that cradled her head.

"He told me to leave. He told me to escape with everyone else. I could not do it. When I asked him to help him, he told me to leave. How could I say no? I should have said no…"

Rising up to her feet, Hologram-Liara paced back and forth, arms flailing to the admission of her guilt.

"I told Shepard that I would stay with him, no matter what. Yet when this happened, he ordered me to leave. I did." She said, sighing, "I did."

"I looked back to see Shepard running through the burning carnage before slipping into an escape pod. I felt my stomach hurdling in and out as I realized what a mistake I have done. It was too late when I looked through the small view port when I truly realized I should've fought to stay aboard. The ship exploded. I knew Shepard was still there and the last escape pod headed off towards us. I later found out that Shepard did in fact perished. When I received that news later that day, I vomited."

She shook her head, a tear could be seen but barely through the transparent layout of the entire hologram.

Then it glitches, repeating the image of her shaking her head again. And again with the words overlaying this image: "I am sorry, Shepard. Forgive… me…"

The holographic image then stuttered before flickering to a new image of Liara standing again, arms crossed as she stood looking towards the audience overhead. It was obvious that the chapter ended, yet those who were all now sitting before the holographic statue waited silently for the next chapter.


	2. An Old Guilt

_Mass Effect _and characters do not belong to me.

Author's Notes: Continuation of Chapter I.

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**Chapter 2 — **_An Old Guilt_

The blizzard rolled into the city, it was massive, covering nearly the entire metropolis and engulfing it with a blanket of white ice. It wasn't unusual for this to happen, hardly at all. Those who lived in the city knew the consequences of living so far north. Yet people continued to live and thrive on such a world as this. For those inside the auditorium, all eyes were up, gazing curiously to the flickering image of the Asari woman named Liara.

Her image flicked and stuttered again, now showing her with a tablet-like device in hand. Her eyes searching nervously over her words before looking up and over the audience. "Okay, thank you." She said quietly before setting this tablet-like device aside.

Walking a few feet in place, she stood before something with arms folded across her chest. There was a few moments of silence with her drawing her own gaze down towards her feet. Her chest rose against the weight on the indecision she made so long ago, pondering as to what would have happened if she stayed aboard the Normandy and helped Shepard after all. She could have saved him. She would have felt his hand in her own one more time.

It was the past for her, and now she was standing side-by-side with him again. Yet, for how long? How long would she keep him for?

"It was months after the Normandy was destroyed and Shepard was dead. I felt sick for weeks. I was unable to move out from my apartment on the Citadel. I couldn't even look at myself in the mirror without feeling truly sick. I knew I had to do something but I could not face the true threat of the Galaxy by myself. No, I could not." Pacing back and forth, Hologram-Liara appeared to be in deep thought, her hand reaching to rub the bridge of her nose before stopping in front of her unknown audience and continued.

"I caught wind of news, truly great news about Shepard. It was a shock to the system to know that someone had recovered his body. My contact didn't reveal his identity and that he asked me to meet him on Omega. Omega…" Liara sighed, lowering her head while shaking it to her disappointment at the same time. "Omega was the one place that I did not belong. I have been there only once, to buy supplies for my dig site in that system. It was a horrid place. Smelled of rotten death while at the same time people with credits walked amongst the poor without a hint of despair in their eyes."

Chuckling to that thought, she looked back up, now placing her hands behind her while she reminisced of how she managed to get Shepard back.

"By the time I arrived to Omega, I met my contact who told me that his body was in stasis. He was a Drell named Feron. He told me that 'he was neither dead or alive'. I could have laughed at his face and walked off. Such words would have easily put me off. Neither dead or alive? Well, I would have proven him wrong by saying that the living can only be alive and the dead can only be dead. Why would this Drell say he was neither both?"

The stories of Shepard's death was not new to historical manifests recounting his resurrection. Many believed what Cerberus did was right, even if it was ethically immoral. How they managed to get him in one piece for its day was almost magic. Today, it could be done if the brain was not damaged beyond repair. Today, Shepard would have easily survived in their society.

Hologram-Liara went on to tell the fabled story about her adventure of getting Shepard back. Having met this Human woman named Miranda Lawson and coming into run-ins with the Shadow Broker's mercenaries. It was an impressive tale, told even by theatrical films that were seen today. Even then, hearing it spoken directly from a faded memory of this woman herself was onto self, an honor.

"We were chased by the Shadow Broker, intent on finding Shepard's body for himself. Thinking on it now, it was funny to know that he was looking for Shepard's body. Even more funny was that everyone else in the Galaxy was looking for him! One man, one Human. He made more friends in the afterlife than he did while he was breathing. Yet I knew the one person he could count on to find him was me. I looked up and down, in and out of places that would have easily killed me. Feron was a great asset in helping me find him. Even if he did lie to me. However, I placed more trust in that Drell than I did with Miranda. She was Cerberus. I did not trust Cerberus. I did not even trust this Illusive Man that was their boss. In the end, I did not know who was worse: The Shadow Broker or The Illusive Man. Neither were good and both wanted Shepard's body for themselves. In the end I figured if the Shadow Broker had Shepard's body, they would destroy it, or possibly use it for worse devious things."

The recounting of this story offered a glimpse into the conspiracy-era of that time. Cerberus, as the historical archives noted, was a Human-operated group who pushed only Human agenda's. They did many ethically immoral actions in the name of Humanity. They were truly a disgusting group. Though most scholar's and professors agree that without Cerberus. Shepard would not have existed and the Galaxy may have not survived the last and final cycle.

Liara continued to re-tell the story about how she managed to get Shepard's body sent to Cerberus on the agreement that they would bring him back alive. When Feron was captured, she had no choice but to flee from the scene with Shepard's intact body. Soon she arrived at a Cerberus facility where she hesitantly handed Shepard's body to them. Congratulations were given to her by Cerberus, she did not care for it. Before she left the facility, she took one long look at the stasis pod.

"I looked at the pod, wondering if he will ever return for us. For me. I knew my guilt would haunt me until the end of my time. For now, I knew he would appreciate what I have done for him. I nodded to Miranda and left the facility. Now my debt I owe for another friend. I must help Feron for all that he has done for me."

Image flickering, the audience understood the chapter was over. Now they were staring at a standing Liara with her hands behind her back and her face looking straight out to the back of the auditorium. Silence followed with whispers etched into the atmosphere.

They knew what the historical manifests had written based on Liara's recording, though a conspiracy had brewed amongst many others. Some suggest Shepard was truly dead and the one that Cerberus supposedly resurrected was nothing more than a clone. Evidence of this was hard pressed to come by based on records found about Cerberus. Those who did not believe in such conspiracies looked to Liara. They knew this woman found a way to bring Shepard back, and if it wasn't for her, there may have not been Dominic Shepard that saved the Galaxy from ultimate extinction.

It didn't take long for the holographic imagery to stutter again, now shifting to a new image of Liara standing, her hands lifted at head level and raised towards the audience. Her fingers were splayed out openly with her digits nimbly wiggling at something off view.

Then she retracted the hand behind her back and stood straight up.

Her eyes looked to the side, then to her other side before looking straight overhead of the audience. Her lips moving side-to-side with words itching to be spoken verbally.

"It was years. Years without news or word on the success of Project Lazarus. I moved on with my life with the fading hope that the project even succeeded. I moved to Illium where I began to grow contacts and brokered information. Before I knew it, I was on top of Illium's information trade business. The only reason I did this was to find Feron and The Shadow Broker. Along with aiding support on the information of The Collector's whereabouts. Something that proved increasingly difficult with each passing month. Every time I heard word about the Collector's, it was either not true or half-true. It was disconcerting to know that I will never find Shepard's killers. I also had lost touch with most of the Normandy crew. Most of which I was tracking to where they were lead off to Cerberus. Including Doctor Chakwas who I was surprised to find working for Cerberus."

There was an unusual glimmer in her eyes as she slowly lowered them down. A twinkle of guilt rose within this mere holographic image of Liara. She was sadden by the impact that was resulted by Shepard's death. The Alliance used his image and death as a rallying cry, promotional recruitment, and most of all, a monumental statue who defeated the Geth. They relied more on his spirit of his death than his skills during his life. This was, according to the collected records left behind by this Asari, was that even the Citadel Council continued to discount the Reaper's existence, even after Shepard's death, the Council still did not believe in the Reaper threat. The Geth were the true threat to them, even if all they ever wanted was peace for themselves.

"Sometimes I would just shut everything off, walk into my apartment and lie down on the bed. I looked to my ceiling, doing nothing but thinking. Thinking about Shepard. That was all I could do before I began to tear myself apart, cursing at myself for ever leaving him behind on the Normandy! At times, I would even get drunk and use my biotics to tear apart my room. The maidens I had hired would walk in and see the destruction of my room. They did not ask a single question as to what had happened, but every time I looked at them, I could see their curiosity striking towards me. It hurts me to even know I was close to just giving it all up."

Raising her attention back off view, she sat herself down and fixated an arm for support, lying her forehead over the palm of her hand.

"I knew I could not give up on Shepard, even if everyone else did. Though I suspected his old crew who signed up for Cerberus also believed in him as well. I continued my work, pressing further and exceeding dangerously into the territory that would have got me killed in most cases. I was close to finding the Shadow Broker. If I found him, I found Feron."

She blinked, turning to her omni-tool before nodding her head foolishly.

"By the Goddess, time escapes me. Save and store."

The image flickered again, now showing Hologram-Liara standing with her face attentive and a smile curling curiously against her cheeks. The audience below whispered again, enjoying the thoughts that were told verbally by a thousand-year old recording. Some of the younger children who were around yawned and fell asleep into their parents' arms.

Others who were around rose up and left for the hotels when the time grew closer towards the night of day. Sleep sought all of them out, with few hesitant to remain at all. A recording that has been around for nearly a century could wait for another day. One by one, people left, smaller children picked up and cradled in the arms of their fathers or mothers.

Soon there was not a single warm body that occupied the cool atmosphere inside the auditorium, leaving only the blue hue of the hologram to remain awake. The blizzard outside calmed with now only flakes drifting in the wind outside, spiraling unabated to the music of the world. The stars of the night sky glistened in the backdrop, remaining frozen in time.

Amongst those very stars, passed the nebula's that lay quiet until the new awakening of a star, and the comets that hurdled passed them unmolested. Moving through the asteroid field, skimming across ancient worlds. Into another time, into another realm.

Against the cold void of the abyss sat a world, scintillated by the sun that wooed in the far backdrop of the system. Through the clouds of rain and passed the plethora of towers that remained still despite time luring them for their destruction. The voices of millions echoed a symphony of a time that did bother them. Aliens from many worlds, across vast systems come here. Seeking wealth, knowledge, and entertainment.

Through the windows that reflected the sun's smile offered a glimpse into the lives of many who looked out onto this world.

For one such window only filled in a void of an empty heart. The feminine features drew across this blue face of hers. Her hand pressed splayed out against the window was the only thing that kept her from falling as her head kneeled before the window, sighing worryingly with the tumor of guilt.

Her teeth peered through the veil of lips, grinding in anger as she pulled back, cursing in anger.

"No!" She yelled, kicking over a chair to the ground. "I won't leave you, damn you Shepard I will not leave you behind!" She looked up, grabbing a bottle with her blue-purple flare of the biotics, entangling the bottle with ease before bringing it to her hand. "Why did you die? Did you not care to think about the rest of us? Joker, Jeff, whatever the hell his name was, he was okay! He was not going to die!" She took a few steps around her bed, dodging an already fallen bookcase.

"To hell with your loyalty to the Alliance, what about the rest of us?" She yelled at the wall, the mirror that hanged effortlessly was now cracked, trickles of blood patterned into what resembled a fist stabbing into the mirror.

Her eyes flickered against the warm drink, the soothing demons that ran into her throat did nothing to purge the fierce anger of this woman as she gently laid the bottle upon the dresser.

Looking into the fractal-damaged mirror, all she could do was frown to the dismay of the horrific images being played out again. And again.

"What about me, Shepard?" Her voice now low, her eyes trembling with the woven anger and sorrow.

She did not see his face in the mirror, hoping that by becoming this drunk, she could hallucinate into seeing him.

She did not.

"WHAT ABOUT _ME_!" The demanded question was only met with a flaring purple answer of her biotics, enrapturing around her hand that was forced it into the mirror, breaking the entire metallic display in half.

Gasping at the sight of her anger, she stumbled back, her eyes flailing wildly at the two halves now on the floor, glass shards spread about around her naked feet. She looked to each and every shard, only seeing herself that was in a drunken stupor.

Falling back onto her bed, she released the bottle, allowing it to roll on the ground. Her face became stoic with only one body part that took the liberty to move. A finger raised up to her lip, tentatively touching it. Such a sensation reminded her when Shepard touched her lip, commenting the beauty about her.

She knew being an Asari always attracted every species in the known Galaxy. To hear it from Shepard back then only made her chuckle. She knew she was gorgeous in his eyes. Then when he followed up by saying she was smart, intelligent and worth risking his butt to rescue her, she continued to chuckle.

He didn't even laugh. Only smiled while he studied her features affectionally.

It was only now did she realized he loved her for who she was, not what she was.

Curling into a fetal position over the bed, she clutched the pillow and helped it by placing it beneath her swollen aching head.

Her vision blurred for several moments as she closed her eyes.

"_Thank you_, Shepard…" she finally said, allowing herself the much needed rest.


	3. Memories Someone We'll Never Forget

_Mass Effect _and characters do not belong to me.

Author's Notes: Enjoy a decently long chapter!

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**Chapter 3 —** _Memories (Someone We'll Never Forget)__  
_

By the following morning, weary eyes awaken to find the snow storm had finally ceased. Only frail gray clouds existed within the pale blue sky. That morning, those who were in the auditorium of last night had found their way back. Some new, some old. The tower that inhabited Liara's recordings was a museum, showcasing one of the Galaxy's treasured figures of the past and present. Much of the history revolved around a select few of who their history remained intact throughout time. For Liara's recording box to be discovered was a treasure-trove of wealth of information.

They were scattered amongst other planets, with fragments revealing the bigger picture in everything. They knew from what she was describing in these recordings that her intention to disperse them across the Galaxy, was so species of the following cycle will learn about the Reapers. It was a long shot of a hope, but a hope that was found.

Much of the information was known about the Reapers, but other information regarding the Reapers themselves was unheard of. Partly because after the war, the information surrounding the Reapers themselves were all but destroyed. The Citadel, the mass relays, everything that concerned the Reapers existences fell through the cracks with the exception of historical vids, journals and data collected over time.

The only remaining existence of a Reaper was saved for historical purposes and study. Much of the technology today stemmed from the gathering of Reaper technology before they were thrown into stars across the galaxy. Except the one that was stored inside a massive building on a world that was light years away from the current one now.

Because of the discovery of these recordings. Most of the information surrounding them was unraveled. Pieces of a jigsaw puzzle was completed, even if there were other details missing. Particularly about the Crucible used to defeat the Reaper's themselves.

With people returning to visit Liara's recordings, many of them waited patiently for the hologram to start up again. For now, they stared at the twelve foot statue-like hologram of the Asari woman. Her presences was benign to those who stood before her, watching in curiosity and waited with abated breath. Many who have visited her had heard of all that there was to know, remembered each and every word, yet they stayed and patiently awaited for her to 'wake' up as well.

Some believe that hearing what she had to say, they could feel what she felt. Live how they lived. In a way, they were reliving a past that was possibly the darkest hour of the Galaxy's existence. Such things were hardly common now. Yes, wars existed here and there but never on a scale as Liara had described it. Ancient machines, indestructible by normal weapons. Killing trillions by each passing month. Such a horrific thought could only be mustered as foolish myth. Thankfully, there was proof of their existence and the war.

Within a matter of seconds, the image that everyone draped their eyes upon flickered back to life. The standing twelve foot tall hologram of her smiling attentively now shuttered with a new image of her looking the other way. Her hands were found behind her back, to which the audience could only see while her eyes faced off towards the observation windows of the auditorium.

"I realized, sitting in the filth of my sorrows would not bring me any closer to finding Feron. Shepard, I was afraid to let go as well." Her head tilted, swiveling in place to which her eyes peered behind the veil of her blue cheeks.

"Letting go of someone you know was already dead, but yet you worked so hard to get back was…"

A lowful sigh escaped the woman, a hand reached up to mask her face at the feeling of her decisions during those many months of isolation. She could never forgive herself for simply 'forgetting' Shepard like that. Yet it was a necessary evil. She needed to or else she could never move on with her work. If she kept drowning her sorrows with Shepard and her own guilt, then ultimately she would have failed both Shepard and Feron.

"You work hours on end in front of a dozen or so computers. Talking with countless people and remembering each of their faces. You swindle your way for information and brokered it for more information. Eventually, you will find yourself in the stratosphere looking back down and realizing you were no longer the person you use to be."

The holographic image of Liara paced over to a chair, deciding to sit on it while crowding her face with rubbing fingers. She looked stressed and by the recording date, it was weeks into the war. The casualty list of that day was high. Liara herself did not look too well either.

Blinking out of her trance, she raised her head back, coiling a leg across her lap and struggled to maintain her due diligence in keeping up with these recordings.

Those below her hologram could feel for her pain but did not understand it. Nobody could say they were under that amount of stress as she was. To know your family may have perished during the war was a frightening thought. To know everything may be gone the next day, that was truly a nightmare not to live in.

"Before I knew it myself. Shepard was out of my mind. All I had to focus on was the Shadow Broker. His minions and assassins were on the look out for me but I always found a way to beat them at their own game. I trained myself to fight in the ancient biotic techniques that the Asari Commando units have trained for years. I was lethal but I always tried to avoid a conflict. They say my tongue was silver, for the human meaning behind it was that I knew my way in persuasion and lies. That is what it took to keep myself alive for another day."

She began rubbing the back of her neck, craning her neck around the fondling fingers, hoping to wrinkle out the stress in her muscles.

Her memories of those times as she remembered were not all glorious as she told it. She didn't even tell Shepard what she went through. What she had to do. If she did, she would never forgive herself.

An electronic beep echoed into her thoughts, channeling the Asari woman awake. Her eyes flashed open and a hand falling beneath the desk towards the hand gun. She waited for the next beep before tapping on the comm-system of her desk.

"Who is it?" She asked, hoping the next answer wouldn't be an all out assault. She knew the tactics the Shadow Broker dealt with. If it was an assassin, then she knew the assassin was not beyond those very doors. Her eyes looked towards a mirror she installed next to a vase that held flowers in it. It was far more reflective than the other portion of the vase, allowing to see if there was someone on the balcony just outside her office.

"It is Nyxeris, ma'am." A raised eyebrow of concern did not quell her thoughts of conspiracy. However this Nyxeris was her new assistant that she had called for. Ever since her old one was found strangled to death in her own bath tub. "Come," Liara responded, tapping a button on the console. The doors in Liara's office swooshed open, revealing of a curvy Asari whose markings flourished in eccentric patterns over her purple pigmentation.

"Welcome, please take a seat." Liara said, offering a hand of gesture to the seat. The purple Asari took a look at the pointed seat for a moment before happily taking it. "Would you like anything?"

Nyxeris shook her head in response and looked about her office while Liara gathered her reports and information.

"I understand you want to become my new assistant. I rarely find anyone who, with these skills that you have acquired over the years, to be available at a time like this. Corporations across Illium would gladly pay for your skills. Why come to me?" Liara was trained to spot lies, as herself over the years made her a master of lying. Though she despised lying itself, she needed it to survive. Looking across to this woman, she wondered why exactly she would accept her offering to become an assistant.

In this case, Nyxeris proved herself worthy of an assistant. Liara looked through countless profiles and data files on Nyxeris. Everything had checked out and she had not a single thread linking her to something that lurked in the shadows.

After the long interview. Liara found herself again hovering over the windows, her wandering eyes scanning amongst the people idly going about their business. The sun was setting on Illium, leaving time for another day of work. For now, she could work on getting that drink she held off all day.

"I did not know Nyxeris would betray me weeks later." Hologram-Liara commented. "I never really found her unusual, but she fooled me. She fooled me into believing she was helping me, only to sneak in a blade into my jugular vein." Lowering her head, she drew in a deep breath before exhaling into her cupped hands.

"The day I found out about Nyxeris being a double agent was when Shepard arrived. But before that, I knew he was alive." Her eyes appeared through the veil of fingers, peaking through it as she pulled them away, forcing her face to be revealed towards the recording.

"Yes, I should have been happy but I wasn't. I wasn't jumping for joy or singing songs. When I heard about it through a outlet with the source originating from Cerberus, I jumped at the chance to know what had happened. It turned out that Shepard may or may not be alive. Conflicting stories were filling the nets like a wildfire. I had to sort them out, but my hopes were draining. Cerberus had a knack for lying, or telling half-truths in their effort to push an agenda."

Fingers tapped fervently across the keyboard, videos, still images and holographic recordings were all faked. She couldn't find a single still of proof of her Shepard being alive. Her eyes dances with hope but her heart was drifting further into the abyss.

Questions rose and quickly deflated by the answers she was not receiving. Thinking he may find her, she alerted port authorities to send him her way. If he ever found her that was. She didn't understand why Cerberus was shooting off such fairy tales as what she was receiving.

Perhaps it was for the Illusive Man's agenda to hide something. Maybe Shepard was dead and this was a way of hiding their failed project?

"I can't do this now, Shepard." She told herself, shutting down the feed from Cerberus outlets. She couldn't bare to hear another false tale about him. Whatever Cerberus was doing, it wasn't good. If they were true, then damn them for playing around like this. If they were lying, then damn them anyways.

"You know Cerberus were awful when you couldn't even get a decent amount of truth out from them." She said, blinking off towards the audience that she did not see.

"But then…" she drifted her eyes down to the floor, grinning slightly at the thought before bringing her gaze over her audience. "Those half-truths and full lies turned out to be true after all." Her grin turned into a warm smile, welcoming the thought when she saw Shepard walking into her office. It was a momentous moment met with the wrong time.

Her image flickered again, now showing her standing over the dozen or so screens that displayed numerous images spread out across the wall. Her back was facing towards the audience while her hands worked on the keyboard in front of her. Quietly as the audience remembered quite fondly, Liara recounts the events of her meeting Shepard for the first time, again.

The door of the office pulled back, revealing the purple Asari Nyxeris with a tablet cradled in her hand. Liara blinked out of her trance of looking over a dozen lines of information flourishing across the screen. Her head tilted back, hoping to look at something else other than words on a transparent glass. "Yes, Nyxeris?" Her wondering voice requested an audience by Nyxeris, interested to see what she had brought in for today while Liara herself worked on quelling a headache.

The woman took a few steps closer to the desk before laying the tablet down in front of Liara's hands. "He is coming to Illium." She said quietly, hoping not to jab a stabbing dagger into her already stressed boss. She had a soft feminine voice but commanding when needed to be.

Hearing this, Liara pulled herself back and over the desk. Her eyes spotted the tablet which lured a hand from the side to scoop it up.

The word 'he' didn't exactly translate into who it was. She didn't expect anyone to be coming by her offices anytime this week except for a brief visit by her friend. Picking the tablet off from the table, she lifted it to see the familiar face that haunted her dreams.

Her jaw could have easily fallen to the ground with a big thump! She didn't stutter to speak and didn't jolt out of her seat with joy. Instead, she comfortably ran her thumb caressingly across his face.

"Shepard?" She voiced his name under her breath, hoping not to attract the attention of Nyxeris who was overlooking her boss with a curious eye.

"So, it is him, then?" Nyxeris asked, inquiring about Shepard was rarely discussed with Liara. The only reason she even brought this news to Liara was because she was on the look out for him on the request by Liara herself. Keeping a tab on local channels reporting of inbound ships coming to Illium. Something that Liara herself didn't bother with when she was close to tracking down the Shadow Broker.

Liara broke contact from looking at the image of Shepard and brought her gaze up to Nyxeris, nodding slowly to her question. "Yes," she said, "it is him."

The purple Asari nodded, taking a few steps back as she allowed her boss some time with this Shepard.

Returning her attention to the tablet in hand, Liara could remember exactly every feature about him. That smile, his voice. These were memories of someone she almost believed she will never see again. But thank the Goddess, she was going to see him once more.

"Nyxeris," she required the Asari woman's attention, luring her closer to the desk as Liara stood up in her place. "When he arrives, please pay for the docking fee's then ask him to visit me at my offices." The Asari woman in front of Liara nodded then turned about face before heading off through the doors. The meeting would be set, now the expectation of seeing Shepard alive again was going to be the most difficult thing to comprehend.

"It was my foolish desires to stop working and just see Shepard right then and there." Hologram-Liara continued, now turning to face another computer off screen. "But I could not. I had an obligation to find Feron and I was very close to finding him. Shepard just so happened to show up at the same time when I was closing in on the Shadow Broker."

Her fingers tapped idly away on the keyboard, her lips ceasing to move and her eyes focused on the task ahead. Then the audience below her caught a glimpse of her hands falling to the side. She bit her lip at the thought of that memory, finding him at her offices that day was the most glorious day of her life.

She didn't have much of these kinds of days where she felt she had accomplished more than uncovering Prothean artifacts.

"I saw the Normandy flying in for docking. My heart was racing, skipping even! I could not believe it. He was here, on Illium! All my work to get his body had paid off, and if my friend Feron died, then his death would not have been in vain. My only hope was that I found Feron before something terrible happened to him." She looked to the side and reached for a cup. There was water in it, something Liara desired at the moment when her throat began to constrict by the emotions of that day.

Swallowing the cool water, she set aside the cup and turned to face the recording device. Her eyes were filled with immense glee, the smile that everyone else was fondly use to now surfaced upon her weary face.

"I heard Nyxeris's voice over the comm and I was just in the middle of talking with one of my agents. He was refusing to give in the information I asked for, he was going to black mail me because he couldn't do a simple task of retrieval! It was funny, knowing that I sounded much more like my mother when I threatened him. I told him clearly 'have you ever faced an Asari commando unit before'? The man looked at me, eyes wide open and knowingly understood the threat I was conveying to him. I switched it off just as Shepard walked in on me."

Her smile melted into a grin as she began chuckling lowly, her head shaking to the tune of embarrassment before taking a seat in front of the recording.

"When I turned around, I saw him, standing before me. It took a moment for my brain to realize this was Shepard. At least from the looks of things. I just stood, in awe, captivated by how well Cerberus managed to fix him up. There was of course red scarring that made him looked slightly… odd. Though it didn't trouble me when I grew closer to him. I forgot my manners, I didn't even realize his other squad members were in the room when all I did was take his hand into mine and lifted it up to my lips. I rubbed his knuckles against my cheek, then brought my gaze to his own."

She lowered her head, bridging both hands together and intertwining her fingers. Her head kneeled against them, giving her leverage as she smiled underneath her hands. The memory flooded her brain, reminding her of that day had brought almost tears to her eyes. She was overwhelmed, shocked, catatonic to see Shepard again, standing before her with his smile that curved ever so slightly into his cheeks.

"I didn't even say hello, I just dove in!" She added, reinforcing her words with an imagery of her hands flailing in front of her.

"I kissed him." She said.

"I… kissed him."

"Hello, Liara." His voice ran through her head like the cool streams of Thessia. Reinvigorating her soul from its slumber. She blinked and realized that her world and his were briefly melded together by the kiss, the only thing she could say was but a whisper of delight.

"I missed you, Shepard." No one else beyond Shepard could hear what she said, but her Shepard knew and she knew this was the Shepard when she began to feel his arms curling around her frame. She almost squeaked with euphoria at his warmth pressing against her body. All that she could do in response was to hug him right back.

The whole scene only lasted a few seconds, but for her it was an eternity that she desired to remained in. Sadly, that was not the case nor was either of them here to get together again. At least not now.

"It is good to see you too, Liara." The Turian voice raised her attention beyond just Shepard, causing her to blush at the sight she was creating for everyone else.

"Oh my, Garrus, what happened to you?" Seeing Garrus like that affected Liara greatly. She had been with him during their own hunt for Saren. He never took a direct hit by any weapon, but his face obviously told a different story since their two year departure.

The Turian of course played it off well, not even hinting that these scars bothered him. "Your boy here got me into a lot of trouble on Omega. But he saved my ass, or this case my face." A round of chuckles riled up the atmosphere of the reunion, but such a reunion was temporary as well. From here on out, it was business. The Collector's were abducting humans from their colonies. Shepard was brought back to fight them.

Liara felt slightly guilty for not joining up with him on this mission, but priorities had to be kept in line for this one.

"There were bigger matters at stake. Shepard was visiting me, seeking information about two notorious individuals on Illium, and also asking how I was doing. I of course indulged him with what I was up to. He seemed a bit taken back that I was on the hunt for the Shadow Broker himself. There was a twinkle in his eye that reminded me that Shepard was merely looking out for me."

The hologram of Liara drifted her hands into the air, formulating a coherent scene with her hands as she recounted the scene by memory.

"Liara, this is dangerous. You know that, right?" It was obvious by how he was sitting on that chair. Head facing forward, arms pinned together while his chin rested upon his knuckles.

She nodded, understanding quite well of the dangers that were present. "You know me Shepard. I can handle myself very well against a few thugs and maybe a rogue Spectre." The remarked quip didn't sit well with Shepard as he sat there staring at here.

Seeing him this worried for her made herself worried. Now that he was alive, he was more concerned for her safety than she was for his own death? Thoughts that sparked in her mind had to be pushed aside. For now, he needed information and he was lucky that she was in the business of information.

"After telling him where he could find Thane and Samara, he needed to leave. But not before he asked me what I needed. It was quite generous of him to know what I wanted. After all, from what I gathered, he was on a tight schedule. The Collector's were obviously not going to wait for him." Liara included information about the Collector's in one of the other recording capsules.

The details about them were that they were once Prothean, or rather re-purposed Prothean. This was the apparent result by the Reapers who after killing their wealth in bodies, the race that surrendered for indoctrination were spared. Of course being spared almost meant the same thing as death. No one was spared.

"I sat there on my chair, just thinking while his question hovered over my head. I really did not want him involved with my affairs. For one, I didn't want to lose him again. Though could I really say that then when he was going after a race who were far more dangerous?" She stood up, walking some ways away from the recording device before stopping, her head looking at the plethora of screens mounted on the wall.

"I figured he could do the small things. Hack a few terminals, get some information. I was essentially just going to use him to find me some information. Tedious, I know, but I didn't want him to get into a firefight so soon. Especially after just seeing him breathing and smiling again was enough for me to even have him with tasks involving cleaning the restrooms of my offices!" She chuckled to the thought. Seeing her Shepard bended over on all fours, cleaning out a toilet like some janitor.

Her preferred vision of Shepard was just a man not involved in fistfights and grenades exploding everywhere.

Though she was proven wrong. Many times. He survived the Citadel assault by Sovereign. Killed the rogue Spectre Saren. Came back from death after the Collector's killed him! Then went to through the Omega-4 Relay and destroyed their entire base! These kind of achievements lifted hope for her and everyone else that followed his exploits. This was a man who was a survivor. How could she possibly place him on hacking duties alone?

For the time, that was the only thing she could do.

"He went about the small business sector of where my offices were located. Hacked a number of terminals, he was surprisingly good at hacking as it were. Turned out, the information I needed was more than I even asked. Soon I had him tracking down a source of where I believed someone was doing spotting on me. Shadow Broker assassin's had a way of following you, either be it on the streets or through electronic means."

She then turned to face the recording device, her grins and smiles fading to an upset frown. Betrayal was the last thing on her list, particularly when she found out it was Nyxeris.

"Shepard told me that everyone on the list were all male. They were referencing a female. It didn't take me long to realized that the information that I came across was from Nyxeris herself. After that bittersweet revelation, biotics and warrior cries were all that was muffled out beyond my office doors."

The bloody mess that was all that remained of Nyxeris was quickly disposed of. Liara herself could not believe that she was fooled by her good looks and well mannered behavior of this woman to not realize she was the spy. The Shadow Broker was good, but she had Shepard. If she had to bet her credits to see who would win in a fight, she would bet it all on Dominic.

The doors pulled back the veil to show Shepard walking in. He looked about for a moment, wondering where Nyxeris's body was before commenting on how the fight went.

Liara responded with a smile, commenting on Nyxeris's fighting ability but lacked a few other fields that caused her to die so quickly.

"I guess that is it then?" Shepard inquired, resting his elbow over the seat.

"For now," she answered quietly. "I wish I could join you Shepard. But I owe a debt to a friend who managed to get your body away from the Collector's themselves."

A brow arched over an eye, sensing that there was more trouble happening while he wasn't awake to see it.

"It was that bad, huh?"

She nodded, figuring it was best not to detail the story of how she managed to even get his body back. Knowing he had to leave.

"Okay, well when I am done I will come back to see you Liara."

Done, she had to laugh mentally at those words. He wasn't as gung-ho as say his former crew of the Normandy.

"That sounds wonderful, Shepard. I hope to see you when you have completed your mission. I heard it is… risky."

"It's a suicide mission, Liara."

Suicide. Mission. She could make sense of the 'mission' but not 'suicide'. Her frown settled over the soft contour's of her face. She didn't want to hear that. Not so soon after she just got him back.

"So, you are really going to go through the Omega-4 Relay then?" Ships that go through it either out of curiosity or for an adrenaline fixed never returned. If Shepard was going into it, then he was truly going to stop the Collector's once and for all.

It sounded much more dangerous for her than chasing a Spectre across the Galaxy.

"Reason why I'm seeking the best of the best."

Yes, the best. Thane and Samara obviously fitted that bill. For her not to come just only added on to the pile of guilt. She was forced by his orders to evacuate the Normandy during the Collector attack. Now she was being forced into an uncomfortable decision made solely on her own to remain on Illium.

Sighing through the slit of her lips, she looked at him with the serious expression that reinforced her attitude of what she was prepared to say to him.

"Is this the reason why Cerberus brought you back? To fight their war?"

The Collector's were not attacking the Asari, the Turian's, or anyone else for that matter. In that moment of time, she could care less for the other human colonies being abducted by them. She just wanted him to not get into another war that was being waged by someone else. Someone who themselves had their own army.

"No, Liara. That is not the reason at all."

She didn't take that as an answer.

"Then, tell me, why?" If she had to make it any clear, she was going to show him in a much more… rude manner.

"Tell me why the Illusive Man is having you go fight the Collector's. Is it because of some colonies that even your own people do not watch over?"

"Liara," he tried to stop here there but she went on, her voice rising in agitation.

"Right now, all I see is you seeking another fight. You were fighting the Geth on remote colonies. In space. Any place the Council asked you. You were their damn pet and you were being used! Now you're under someone else's ruling. Now he is asking you to fight an enemy who is barely whispered of or even seen!" She stood up, shoving the chair from behind her and walking around her desk to get a better picture of Shepard's face.

"Do you like death so much you are willing to find it? Is that the reason, Shepard?" She jolted a finger into his armor, hoping that in some way it would jolt him awake and see the truth. The truth of her guilt and her consciousness not allowing her to accept that Shepard was a soldier first and foremost.

"Liara, please." He lifted a hand, hoping it would stop her but it didn't. She slapped the hand out and pulled away, not realizing what she had done.

"No! No more Shepard! I brought you back because I believed in your vision. Believed that the Reaper's were coming. Not so you can go die for some delusions of a mad man!" She ran a hand over her scalp, but it didn't calm her one bit.

"I want you to stay alive! I-I want you… to stay alive. For me, Shepard." She couldn't take the emotion that was overtaking her body, weakening her knee's to such a state that she moved against the observation windows and leaned against it. Her frame slowly slide down to where her rear made contact with the floor.

Her head lifted against the tense atmosphere, showing of her fears and frustrations along with the embedded guilt that was slowly falling from her eyes.

"I am alive, Liara." He said softly, escaping the seat of the chair, he made his way over to her to sit down next to her. "I know what you did for me. Miranda told me. All of it. What you did, I don't know what I can say or even how to repay you." She felt the warmth of his glove fixating over her cheek as he gently lured her face to see his own.

"I am not working for Cerberus. But what I am doing is trying to stop the Collector's. They work for the Reapers. I am doing this to delay the Reapers, and yes for the human colonies."

Human colonies! Bah! She didn't see the reason why he would lay down his life for people who probably didn't know much about him.

"Human. Colonies?" She asked, her voice gravely from the emotions turning her gut inside and out.

"Yes, they are abducting whole colonies."

"I know, I just-" she looked away at the last second, besieged by what she knew was her own selfishness. She didn't really mean to think that these human colonies were worthless.

"I didn't mean to say those words, Shepard. I am, I am just stressed." Shepard could only smile at her, hearing those words made him know she was still very much the flesh and boned Liara. Not some heartless woman that she shielded herself to be. She can be tough but she knew her limits. Taking her by the hand, Shepard helped her up to her feet.

"I know." He whispered softly., removing both gauntlets and setting them aside on her desk. He reached for her hands and brought them to his chest. "You have some cold hands," he added wryly while he massaged them.

"I am a cold woman, Shepard."

"No you're not. Trust me." There was a fleeting grin on his face that she found amusing. She wasn't entirely sure what he meant by that.

"Trust me, he said. I should've seen my face in the mirror that moment. Blushing uncontrollably." She took her hands and mimicked his touch on her face. "Shepard was a unique person. Hardened by battle and soft on the inside. Krogans liked him just as much as the Turians did. He had many more friends across a vast wide variety of species, those who did not like each other to begin with. But if it is Shepard, they would follow him into hell and back."

An electronic beep signaled her of the time. Frowning to her dismay, she needed the sleep for tomorrow's operation. Looking back to her unknown audience, she smiled and nodded. "Whoever finds these recordings. I hope so far you are enjoying them. And have at least learned something. Save and store."

The holographic image flickered again, now showing the Asari woman standing upright with her hands behind her back. The smile everyone was used to had surfaced again while the audience began leaving and moving about through the museum.

The child who had visited the hologram of Liara last evening was still around. Her hand was held tightly by her mother who looked up to the woman. "Mama, she is beautiful isn't she?" The child commented innocently, gaining the attention of her mother who looked down and smiled.

"Yes, she is."

"Can we stay a little longer?"

A frown found its way hesitantly to her mother's face. Knowing they had other priorities to attend to. Crouching in front of her child, she nodded with a reassuring smile. "I promise, when we are done with our errands today. We will come back first thing in the morning."

The child limped her head to the side, craning her eyes to look back at the statue-like figure of Liara before returning her gaze back to her mother, disappointingly.

"Okay, mama."

"Do not fret, child. She will always be around. Trust me."


	4. What We're Fighting For

_Mass Effect _and characters do not belong to me.

Author's Notes: Another long chapter, yet slightly corny?

* * *

**Chapter 4 —** _What We're Fighting For_

The afternoon drizzle of rain and sleet had forced many to leave the museum before the approaching blizzard had struck the metropolis. The forecast for tonight was going to be cold, with temperatures dropping below zero. Such a wild weather as this didn't deter those who were willing to stay a little longer before heading out home. One such was a couple who looked up to see the holographic statue of Liara standing overhead with her head held high. Whispering comments were made amongst the couple to discuss whether or not she had survived the war. The spouse argued that she had died, pointing that if she had lived, she would be amongst them today. The Asari had lived for a thousand years, she was young when the war was raging.

Yet she was not seen or heard of in the present time.

The only remnants of her life was these recordings. Most of which were not even told by her, only by a VI that was called Glyph.

The recordings about vital important issues it appeared as told by Liara herself. Possibly as a way of showcasing that they still wanted to convey some emotional attachment to the important topics she had discussed about. Including Shepard who she fondly talk about.

"You think the weather will get worse?" The spouse asked, raising a concern expression over her mate.

"If it does, then we will leave immediately. For now, I think we can stick around a little longer." The suggestion allowed them to remain in front of the glowing blue hue of the hologram. Sensor's built into the foundation of the hologram made a quick scan of those in front of it. If there was even a single person, the hologram would be triggered to play the next recording.

Hooking her arm through her mate's own, she tilted her head just enough where she could rest it on his shoulder. Her eyes beamed with curiosity while the hologram flickered to life.

Now, they could see Liara sitting quietly, alone with a cup held by her fingers. Steam rose out, indicating that the liquid she was drinking was warm.

"When Shepard left, I was left alone. Not the alone that I knew of the past two years, I felt like I had an obligation to finish out what was started all those years ago. To get Feron. But before he did leave, I pulled Garrus away for just a moment while Shepard had a talk with Jeff on the Normandy. I told Garrus to keep an eye out for him. He of course understood my fears and concerns and promised to watch over him."

Looking down to her feet, she could not help herself but smile to that moment in time. To know she had to ask Garrus of all people to watch over Shepard. She couldn't entirely trust anyone else to ensure Shepard's safety. She was good friends with Tali'Zorah but, to think of it, a Quarian was not exactly a good idea of a 'bodyguard'. Everyone else on the Normandy at the time were either Cerberus or assassin's. Though she would have leaned in for support of Samara, but the Justicar code had a way of not making any clear promises.

"The fact was, I couldn't allow myself to bring Shepard into my thoughts when my focus was on finding the Shadow Broker. I had to pool all of my resources onto the single entity. I knew I could trust Garrus in protecting Shepard. Just before he left through the Omega-4 Relay, he sent me an email." A frown settled upon the blue contours of her face, hoping to gain the strength to retell it to her unknown audience.

"I was incredibly busy, trying to get my contacts in order so they could send me the location of the Broker's base of operations. Then this email popped up on the screen. It was from Shepard. I didn't want to open it at that moment, knowing if I did, all I was going to do was think about him." Shrugging, she knew she was going to open it anyways.

"I went against my consciousness and opened it!" She chirped, "reading what he wrote to me, it read like a letter incase he didn't make it out." A snort escaped her, along with the repetitious shakes of her head.

"Liara," she began softly, looking away from her audience as she verbally spoke out the letter from memory. "My team and I are about to head through the Relay, the Collector's hit us hard a day earlier. They ambushed the Normandy when I had to make a run for an off world colony. They abducted all of my crew except Joker. He is fine, if you are wondering, a little shaken up but the man just wants some payback. Same goes with everyone else. They are all ready. Ready to take on the Collector's and hope to get the crew back. I am ready too."

She stopped, looking the opposite way of where she was looking and sighed through her teeth. Her heart ached with pain, understanding that he could have easily been killed in the mission. However, she continued on.

"I know you wish to join me, but I am glad you didn't. I am glad you stayed behind. I need someone who will keep hope alive when the Reapers invade. I need someone to be there for me if I do not make it out alive. I know right now you are probably worried for me. Do not be. I have a great team and I will ensure everyone gets out alive. But I must face the fact that I only escaped death once. I am Human after all and was only lucky to return because of you and your friend Feron; and of course Miranda. But-"

Liara stopped again, placing the cup upon a desk as she looked away from the recording device. The palms of her hands supported her head as she felt weak.

"But I am a soldier, Liara. If nobody takes on the Collector's then who will? If nobody took on Saren, then we wouldn't be talking right now. Someone needs to do this Liara. I hope-I…" she began to stutter with the words. Not because she didn't remember the entire letter, but because she felt herself losing it all when she read that letter that night. Alone.

"I hope to see you again." Another round of a snort managed to vent out from her as she pulled herself back against the chair. "He wasn't very good at typing letters, but reading that still hit me. I couldn't move for an hour, knowing what he was about to go through. Yet I managed to gather my bearings and move on with my own goals. My own priorities. That day I prayed to the Goddess Athame. Hoping he would survive." She brought her gaze back to the recording device, uninterested to go further into the details about the raid that took place by Shepard's team.

The event was a well known exploit of Shepard's. The fact that he went in with a hand full of people and managed to blow the Collector Base was a truly amazing achievement. Most people gave credit to Shepard, even after he got everyone out alive. Shepard of course denounce any credit. That he was merely 'doing his duty' to serve and protect Human colonies, and allied colonies of the Citadel.

Smirking, she remembered vividly of the vids playing over and over on the extranet.

"The following week, after he destroyed the Collector Base, feeds were jumping off the wall about Shepard and his team's exploits to the Collector Base. Some were exaggerations, no one obviously had any stories to tell besides some of the leaked reports from the Alliance. Particularly from David Anderson. Shepard's good friend and former Commanding Officer of the Normandy."

She blinked out of her reminiscing trance and looked up. Her mouth split in two, fear drew to her eyes and concern grew inside of her. "What?"

"They died on Menae." Someone off screen reported. Liara wasn't too happy and immediately leaped off from her chair. "Shepard?"

"He is going to hold a memorial service in the shuttle bay." She looked to the screens that began to fill in the void of her hologram. Then she turned wearily to the recording device. "I will need to continue later. Save and store."

The audience below knew what had happened, on another separate recording. Liara described that two volunteers from the Normandy requested to help the Turian's on Menae. A decision not made lightly by Shepard who refused their request three times. By the fourth time, Shepard knew how dire the situation on Menae was becoming. This was before Shepard had managed to get the Krogans into the war, who eventually helped slow down the Reaper's on Palaven.

For now, her audience would only see a flickering image of her standing tall again. The same old smile firmly woven into her face as they patiently waited for the next recordings.

The space of the shuttle bay were filled with most of the Normandy crew, their uniforms pressed and clean. The Alliance beret's on their heads, displaying the insignia of the Systems Alliance. Two neatly rows were made on opposite ends of the bay, their hands behind their backs and posture at ease. The elevator to the shuttle bay opened, revealing Shepard in his own Officer's uniform as he walked up to the rows. He took one look of either side of the rows and nodded to them.

Quietly, the man began walking towards the rear end of the shuttle bay. There was nothing special planned, no flags of the System Alliance, no bugler to play a hymn. No prayers prayed. All there was the silence that filled the sorrowing atmosphere.

Garrus, Liara, and the rest of the more alien crew were found behind Shepard when he finally made it to the rear. He gave them all a look that conveyed a sense of thanks, despite even his eyes that held a heavy grief for those who had perished on Menae.

Turning about face, he looked to his crew while those that were behind him walked off to fill in the gaps of the rows. A sigh was audibly heard while Shepard managed to grasp the reality that was setting in. The hands that situated themselves behind him could no longer stay silent, setting them aside to his hips. Relaxing briefly, Shepard looked on to the faces that didn't look to him.

"As an officer of the Systems Alliance, I swore an oath to defend Earth and her allies." He began in a somber, quiet tone. Not raising it with the spirits of revenge nor seeking attention for himself. He knew they all looked up to him for morale, but for how long? The internal struggle for the question went on battling without a flinch from anyone in the room with him. They didn't know, and he hoped they never knew how deep this war was truly affecting him.

"Prior to this war, we were only defending ourselves against the unknown. Our grandfathers shed blood on worlds that were barely colonized. They were fighting for freedom, not knowing that we only broke a Council law." There was no fleeting smirk, snort, of a chuckle amongst one of them. Including Garrus who knew of the First Contact War. The Turian soldier didn't even bat an eye at Shepard who continued on with the speech.

"Prior to this war, we did not like one another. The Salarians and the Krogans, the genophage did more than nearly killed an entire race. It made them mortal enemies. Turians and Humans did not like one another until we worked together to keep the peace. Prior to this war, we ourselves were in constant conflict." Raising his chin, he quickly glimpsed to the side to find Liara looking at him. She didn't smile, didn't frown, merely attentive to what he was saying.

"Prior to this war, Mr. Zimmer and Mr. Foster both served admirably aboard numerous Alliance vessels. They were soldiers first and foremost and battle hardened of fighting mercenaries on Human colonies. They were not decorated heroes, nor were they praised by the Alliance for their service on numerous missions. " Quietly, Shepard step aside and made his first few steps forward between the rows. He looked amongst the faces, all of which were at attention and didn't make eye contact with the Commander.

"When this war came to Earth, they knew they had a duty to protect Earth. They were just as equally as mad as I was when I was ordered to leave Earth behind." Again, the Commander took another few more steps forward, his gaze scanning amongst the faces. Most of them were new faces to him, except for the usual suspects he had been around for ages.

"When I was sent to Menae, I didn't expect the Reapers to have such a foothold on Palaven until we came out of FTL. The Turian homeworld was burning. When we landed on Palaven's moon, we could see the extent of the war was having on the Turian's. They were losing more men and women by the hour than any war they ever had combined. Seeing this destruction lead Mr. Zimmer and Mr. Foster to do what they needed to do, not what some bureaucrat asked of them. Not what a General asked of them. But what they believed. They volunteered to support the Turian's."

Shepard took another step and stopped in front of Garrus who was a little shaken by seeing the Commander so close to him. The stern eyes of Shepard dissolved into a soft expression of grief.

"These men died defending the Turian moon of Palaven. They died protecting a world that was not of their birth. I denied them to go to Menae, knowing I needed them here on the Normandy. But when Garrus told me how bad it was, I realized that those men who came to my cabin a few nights ago could put their skills more into use by helping the Turian's than walking about guarding certain compartments of the Normandy." Nodding to Garrus, he pulled back and continued walking until he was on the other end of the rows; between the gaps of the shuttle consoles.

"This war is no longer about us bickering at each other. It is about us striving to survive. If they fought and died for the Turian homeworld and their freedom, then what it is to say we cannot do the same for each other?" Turning about, he stood straight, hands pressed behind his back. He looked on without glimpsing at another face. The silence in the room could not hold back a few quivering faces. The emotions were running high and Shepard knew exactly that this war was coming to them all.

"You all know me for taking down Saren, for stopping the Collector's. I will tell you now, I am no hero. I have lost men on Akuze and lost even more during this war. Mr. Zimmer and Mr. Foster are the heroes in my eyes. They gave their lives so that the Turian's have another day to fight. Another chance to survive. I will not make any promises that any of us will survive this. However, I will make damn sure the Reaper's know that in this cycle, it was not worth the price of their own to fight us. We will take as many of them down with us before they could wipe us all out. That I can promise."

Following his speech, Shepard and everyone inside the shuttle bay remained silent. Giving their respects for those who have all fallen during this war. When it was over, everyone had left to return to their stations. Shepard however left for his cabin, alone.

Unbuttoning the dress uniform, he laid it out nonchalantly over a chair before moving across the aquarium, the reflection of his face faded into the aquarium's sheen glass. Lazily bringing about a finger to press the switch, feeding his fish while he went on about shedding the uniform. He didn't even bother to look at the fish he had since he came aboard SR2. Instead, the digits of his hand continued to undress his uniform before sitting down on the couch.

There was a blank expression written into his face. Blank thoughts infused with the chatter and images of the service, not caring to go deeper than what he had seen and heard around him. Everything about the memorial service felt like a death sentence for him. He was walking through those rows, not even thinking about his own mortality, except finding that others were dying around him.

Placing his boots over the coffee table, Shepard finally decided to give in to his indulgences and bring about his attention to the aquarium. The fishes and jelly fishes swam unknowingly to the conflict beyond their own world. All they knew that feeding time was when the big shadow loomed in front of them.

"What a world," Shepard musingly said to himself. If there was any difference between him and those fishes, he thought - besides the obvious - was that bliss must have been wonderful to have.

Leaning his head back into the seat, he looked at the ceiling. Flashes of the two men who died on Menae drifted in and out of his conscious mind. Wondering what they would have been up to had they stayed aboard the Normandy. The music playing for the audience of his cabin changed tune, now playing a soft piano movement. He didn't exactly knew who the composer was but it was just enough for him to fall asleep too.

The holographic image of Liara shuttered with a new appearance of the woman now sitting in her seat. Her eyes wore themselves with the exhaustion. She shook her head, not wishing to look directly up to her unknown audience. Her fingers came together again, rubbing themselves while she tried to think up of something to say to the recording device.

Following another moment of silence from the Asari woman, she sought out the device and warmly looked up with a small amount of hope, despite the obvious despair weighing down upon her.

"You do not walk out of a memorial service after what Shepard had said. He gave hope to where hope did not exist in. I saw those men, women, even Garrus where the extent of this war had damaged them. It was wearing on them all like a thousand shards of glass slowly cutting them away."

A sigh managed to escape from her, her eyes betraying the feeling of what she had heard from Shepard privately.

"I noticed Shepard had a shield around him. He didn't allow himself to show the wears and tears to everyone else." She added, running her two hands together very slowly.

"I followed him to his cabin, knowing he didn't ask for me and I didn't ask for him. I appeared in his front door, a little worried for his well being as I called to allow myself in." She began to bite her lower lip, chewing on it a little while the eyes of hers moved to the right. Pondering as to where to go from here on out.

Bweep. Bweep. Bweep.

A slumbering Shepard twitched out of his nap, finding himself dazed by the electronic beeping coming from his cabin's door. "Wh-who is it?" He demanded, still stirring out from the couch while fixing the coffee table.

"It is me, Liara, can I come in, Shepard?"

Liara, he thought. He didn't outright expected her to be visiting him so soon. He knew she had some business to attend with in her own quarters, something about getting some Shadow Broker agents to a few places.

"Yes, of course." Rising up from where he sat, he walked about the table and up the small steps before finding the woman standing just a few inches inside of his cabin. The door behind her shut silently with a small wisp of air re-pressurizing his cabin.

He looked up, taking a cup of a two day old glass of water that has been sitting there for some time. It was a habit Liara grew to understand. When he had nothing to do with his hands, he would pick up something. Be it a cup, pen, paper, or even a toy. After briefly catching this small anomaly of his, she returned her gaze up to his own.

A smile curiously pricked at the side of her cheek, hoping to warm his soul as she took a few steps closer towards the Commander of the Normandy.

"How are you Shepard?"

A question as old as time itself! He shrugged, not really caring to answer to which she already knew of.

"Good, Liara. How about yourself?"

She looked around his cabin, finding the models of ships an astounding collection. "The usual."

"How human of you." He quipped, smirking at her own human mannerisms that she was picking up.

"Not as human as you would like, I assume?" She added back, hoping to get a chuckle from him.

He didn't budge, instead he moved around behind Liara who was at the same time hovering over his desk. Her fingers moved about in an analytical pattern. She shuddered when she found herself being fondled by the kneading fingers of her bondmate, rousing around her belly as he gave her a half-attempted hug from behind.

"No," he whispered tenderly behind her.

"I just want you to be you." She turned around, finding herself face to face with Shepard and his inexcusable remarks. "Good, now," the turning of topics became about him.

"About you Shepard." She brought about a finger closer to the edge of his glass, tracing it along the rim before finding his hand.

"Last time I checked, you knew me more than the Alliance does." He added, laughing. It was a defensive mechanism she found positive about him. He knew how to defuse a situation he didn't like with poor humor. Hearing it so close now almost made her laugh - this time!

"Well, not exactly." She admitted, "I would like to know how you are feeling."

A brow lifted over one eye, wondering if they were circling around with questions again.

"Like I said, good." That wasn't exactly what she wanted to hear, more aloud she shook her head to his answer.

"No, I mean how are you. Shepard. Not the Shepard you share with everyone. The Shepard that is beneath the armor."

There was a look in his eyes that she caught, knowing he didn't want to delve into this right now. Pulling back, the Commander didn't want to indulge in Liara's curiosity so quickly. Instead, he found an escape route that lead him back to the aquarium.

Seeing this, a frown displaced her features. She didn't exactly account on Shepard from being so quick to leave her with such a question as that. Liara took a step further behind the Commander, hoping to see if she could in some way get an answer that she was seeking.

He raised the glass close enough to his mouth but not subjecting himself to drinking it. Instead, he watched with mild entertainment of the fishes swimming about. It was a distraction that didn't work when he saw her blue face emerging from behind him.

"Shepard…" her voice was low, soft. She wanted to see him again but he was refusing to allow it.

"Dominic," she called for him again, this time being more personal. "I can see it on your face. Every time you come back from a mission, you look like hell. Figuratively speaking."

"That is because I just battled my way out of hordes of enemies, Liara." He rebuttal, hoping that she wouldn't continue to pursue this question.

"No, forgive my human terminology, but that is not what I mean. I mean I always see failure rotting away at your face. Even when the mission is a success, you appear as though you have lost more men than you ever did." She grew closer, stretching forth a hand that rested upon his shoulder. She inched closer around, hoping to see his face. He didn't move or redact his shoulder from which her hand rested.

"Failure?" He asked, evident that he still did not know what she means.

"Yes, like you have been beaten at your own game."

"That failure." Now he could clearly see what she meant. Sighing mentally, Shepard turned to face her while leaning into the aquarium. The cup glass that remained held by his hand wobbled.

"You saw what happened on Menae, right?" He asked her, wondering if she understood the extent of the war. To which she knew, and she felt as though he was being slightly condescending to her.

"You know I have, Shepard." It didn't take a second for her to gather her thoughts when he attacked.

"Then you know damn well we are going to lose this war." Pulling away, he slammed the cup on the desk on his way towards the couch.

"You say that as though it is true!" She said, her voice rising slightly in protest to his sudden quick escape.

He didn't even managed to sit down before shooting a look back at Liara, finding that her words were a defiant to what he knew was the truth. "It. Is. True!" He yelled as loud as possible without making it sound like he was angry at her.

She looked on, not with fear of Shepard, but the fear of what Shepard was becoming. In return, Shepard himself walked around again, going up the steps before closing in on his prey - Liara.

"I saw Earth fall in less than an hour. I saw more people die than I have ever seen in my entire military career. There were more civilians dead than all the one's I have fought to save." His face leaned forward, finger out and prodding the air at the side of him.

It took a moment for Shepard to gather his own thoughts, recoiling away from Liara where he turned to face the aquarium. Arms wrestled over his chest, uncomfortably finding a way to ease the tension building within. Teeth gritted at the memory flooding in of Earth's fall. He didn't want to relive it, but maybe it was the only way that Liara could see what he saw.

"I saw a child. No older than ten. He was inside a vent, hoping to escape the mayhem that was going on outside. I tried to help him but he refused and scurried away just as Anderson called for me." He lowered his head, feeling the guilt striking him in his heart.

"When the Normandy arrived and Anderson told me he was going to stay behind, I was standing on the ramp. Looking at the vista of destruction. I could see the Alliance evacuating people. Bringing them aboard Kodiak's. Then I saw a child running for one of them. He was alone, his parents probably dead. When he was brought on board, I could see that he was safe. Not until was it in the air did I realize a Reaper behind it looking straight at it. I couldn't say a damn thing, it wouldn't have mattered anyways when the Reaper fired its main weapon. Destroying the Kodiak, killing the boy inside."

Liara who was just centimeters away from him looked on with a frown that besieged her. She could feel the pain and hurt in his words, leaving the woman with no way to heal them. He turned around slowly, facing her again as he lifted his head up and his eyes bearing down upon the woman in front of him.

"That was when I knew the war was already over with before it even began." He admitted, looking away in shame, he walked away from Liara as he turned to face the models of ships of his cabin. "Menae seemed to reverberate those feelings again." It didn't make sense to Liara, that yet with this idea stuck in his head, he still fought.

"So why do you still fight, Shepard?" She asked, her voice being more stern of an order than a legitimate question.

"Is it revenge? Is it to give some people a morale boost? What?" Liara wanted an answer from him, even if it was damning.

He didn't answer, instead he looked on towards the inanimate objects of his desk.

"Earth is gone, Palaven will be gone. Why do you continue to fight? What point is there in fighting if you feel that this war is already over. Why do you parade around the Alliance, pretending as though you think you know a way to defeat the Reapers. The grand Commander who has defeated Saren, the Collector's, now does not have a way to defeat the Reapers? Why the sudden-"

Suddenly, the Commander turned around and looked at her before storming down her throat.

"I am fighting so those who are still breathing can have another day of life!" It didn't deter from Liara from countering with her own words and her own gesturing assault. She stomped forward and fingered his chest defiantly while she raised her voice against his own conscious thoughts.

"That is futile! You know it! In the end we will all be dead. Why waste your time? WHY?"

He obviously didn't have a clear answer, only the burrowing of brows retaliated along with a verbal assault of his own. "BECAUSE! BECAUSE-" His teeth gritted along with his locked jaw. The hand beside his hip formed into a fist, unsure where to go and whom to hit. He sure was not going to hit Liara, but he felt the anger rising. The anger he felt when he saw Earth fall to these machines.

Heaving chest, Shepard backed down and looked up with defeated eyes. Knowing he didn't have a true answer to her question.

"I-" he stuttered, looking to his desk then to Liara, frantically searching for a physical answer before allowing the dam that held back his true answer, free.

"I don't want to… fail those who do have hope. More hope than I do. Why should they perish when they feel they have a chance to win this war? I want to give them that hope, even when I feel this war is futile." Drawing his attention to the floor, Shepard rallied back to the desk chair, slumping in his defeat and honesty that dethroned him the image of 'Commander Shepard'.

Liara crouched before him, taking his hands into her own as she looked up to meet the eyes draped in humiliation. "I do not want to fail those who look up to me. To everyone on the Normandy, I am the one man who appears to have plan. I don't. You do. You discovered the Crucible. What have I done?"

"You've done more than anyone could possibly imagine." She said, comforting his hands.

"And that is what? I left Earth in ruins. I left Palaven in ruins. I could not stop them. I could not stop the Reapers."

"Who else can say they were the one to defeat Saren? Died and returned, only to destroy those that killed you? You gave hope where hope did not exist."

He shook his head, not seeing her insight in all of what she was saying.

"I was only doing my duty, Liara." She rose to her feet, finally knowing what Shepard needed to know.

She looked him in the eye, her lips a thin line and her cheeks pale blue while she conveyed the message he just told her.

"Then do your duty. You're a soldier of the Alliance, you swore an oath to defend Earth." Raising his gaze up to Liara's, he looked on with wondering eyes while she continued.

"You swore an oath to defend the Alliance's allies. If you fail to defend it, then the Reaper's have already defeated you." She gripped his hands and pulled him out of his seat where he wobbled on both legs. Her hands drew to his shoulders, holding him place as she looked him squarely face-to-face.

"You are Lieutenant Commander Dominic Shepard, of the SSV Normandy SR-2. You, Dominic, swore an oath to defend the Alliance, to defend Earth, and to defend your allies. That is all that your commanding officer's want from you. Do your duty, soldier. Fight for Earth. Fight for us." She looked closely into his eyes as she held her grip on his shoulders. "Fight for the future. Commander Shepard." Her stern voice reached into the depths of his conscious where on the outside, Shepard nodded, affirming that he had to do what the Alliance called upon him to do.

"Okay… Okay," he breathed, acknowledging what Liara was trying to tell him.

"Okay, he said. Okay. A switch went off in his head. He realized this was no longer about the end. It was about how, now, that he needed to make a difference while he was still breathing." A small yet stable smile surfaced through her exhausted expression, turning back to look at the recording device. "Nobody knew what I had heard from him. Not even Garrus who was his best friend, or Jeff Moreau. Had they seen him what I had seen, they too would feel that fighting would have been useless. Shepard… he needed to know what he was fighting for and why."

Pausing with her words, she realized that if someone found these recording capsules, she needed to remind them of who was fighting these Reapers. That they all didn't just surrender and be indoctrinated because they knew from the beginning that they were defeated. But that they were fighting to survival."If you find these recordings and you look up into the sky one day. Know that we did not give up. That we did not surrender. We fought…." her quiet tone drifted into the atmosphere of her quarters.

"We fought."

Hologram-Liara flickered to the usual stance, her ten foot image standing over the foundation as her hands were again found behind her and the smile ever present upon her face. The audience below whispered amongst themselves, slowly dispersing again into the rest of the museum. Finding that another day they will visit the hologram of this Asari woman.

"Do you think, if something like that ever happened again, that we could fight just as hard as they did?" The couple were talking amongst themselves again, holding hands while they left the auditorium. Her spouse looked over and chuckled.

"I believe you are spending too much time here." He added, grinning sarcastically before planting a small kiss on her cheek.


	5. That Which You Seek

_Mass Effect _and characters do not belong to me.

Author's Notes: An even longer chapter and more shredded cheese.

* * *

**Chapter 5 —** _That Which You Seek_

The oval shaped audituroum welcomed in both old and new attendee's while the weather outside of the museum grew mild. The storm that had brought in the snow last night now freckled the sky with flakes of white, dotting the streets below to formulate small piles of ice and sleet. The temperatures outside rose slightly during the afternoon while gradually dropping over the course of the day and through the evening. Allowing many of the pedestrians of the city to do their business with ease before tonight.

One such building that was busy was the museum, people were walking about through the halls of history. Few however were waiting for the recordings of the Asari woman - Liara - to be finished with repairs. Only one session would be allowed for that night, leaving many who had come to see the recordings to be slightly disappointed now that they would have to wait. However, those who indeed return would come in a larger mass than last night.

Since the discovery of these capsules, they were kept in pristine condition, keeping the relatively strong capsules ageless. Some however were not so lucky. During the war, two of the capsules went through incredible stresses. One of which was on Earth. It was placed into one of the many structures that were built to keep records of Earth's past and present alive if the Reapers managed to wipe everyone out. However, this structure was one of the focal point of a battle during the final stages of the war, in which the structure - known as the Ark - was brutally hit by a Reaper force of Destroyers.

Luckily, many of the objects and data was kept beneath the mountains of where the Ark was located. The unfortunate downside was that when the Reaper force arrived, they were ripping through the defenses with their primary weapon. Their focus weapon sheered through the mountains, causing cave-ins around the structure of the Ark. The capsule that was placed there suffered some damages, resulting maintence every now and then when it is played to the audience.

Which is also to suggest the reasoning for the less than frequent glitches and hiccups.

Historians point out that the Ark was not a valuable target for any Reaper force to attack, besides the defenses that were there. However, after uncovering the records of Liara, the Asari woman had pointed out that the Reaper's were not only targeting sentient species, but their culture, history, anything that would trace back to the Reapers was deemed valuable. She wasn't sure if to say they had a fear or an objective for this, but they wanted to wipe out remaining traces so as that the next species to rise up to the galactic stage would not find out about the Reaper's themselves.

It was a plan that appeared to have gone on since the cycles began. Each cycle, the Reapers would target historical archives, data, cultural belongings for each race. Hoping to wipe out them and any remaining traces of their existence all at once. The Prothean's managed with a single shot of luck to hide their remaining information on themselves, the way they battled the Reapers, their mistakes and the Reapers themselves through Prothean beacons. On Ilos, a massive data cache on the Prothean's were kept there, sadly most of which had decayed due to power loss. It was also known that there were several Prothean scientists, engineers, and such kept in stasis but all were dead. Eventually, the last person to come into contact with the Prothean data on Ilos was in fact Commander Shepard.

For now, it seemed this evening, more people were showing up for tonight's session. Museum attendee's gathered around the Holographic image of Liara, standing just above the solid foundation beneath her feet. Hands were always behind her back while the smile offered to appease those who were just now coming into the audituroum.

With the final body inside the audituroum, the image flickered with blues and purples glossing over several other images of Liara. Finally, the hologram settled upon Liara who was sitting on a bed, guarded by two bookshelves on either side. Her face was buried in a tablet she was handling, her eyes tracing through the words that rolled across the screen.

Finally, the woman placed the tablet aside and stood up, walking through the room of her quarters aboard the Normandy. The audience never would get a clear three hundred and sixty-degree view of her quarters, as the hologram that is shown is a small window.

Stopping in her steps, she turned and took the chair in front of her and swiveled it, allowing to seat herself upon it. Then, her face turned to the recording device, aware that it was on.

A crescent smile curved across her face, a jovial image of Liara that was rarely seen during these recordings was a warm welcome by the audience.

"I did not have enough time to express what has been happening on our missions as of late. Recently, Shepard had managed to find a fertile female Krogan on the Salarian homeworld of Sur'Kesh. Doctor Mordin Solus also helped in securing her safety watched over her while on the Normandy. Wrex, an old friend of mine, was also aboard the Normandy. We all headed for Tuchanka, hoping to end the Genophage and cure the Krogans." She briefly looked away, obviously smirking to what happened on that mission.

"Shepard managed to do it all, with help of course." she added, chuckling under her breath. Turning back to the device, she nodded to her unknown audience. "There was a Reaper there, trying to stop us from curing the Genophage, along with Cerberus. We managed to beat them all. With a little bit of luck of course, and a massive Thresher Maw."

Liara was giddy, finding hope that they could truly win this war. Shepard too found some hope amidst the war that was brewing across the Galaxy.

"Shepard, the crew finally saw his face when he returned to the Normandy after the mission. He congratulated them all in the work they have done, curing the Genophage, saving the Krogans, and now having the Krogans helping the Turians. All of it appeared to be working very well."

A soft sigh escaped from her lips, her head turning just slightly while bowing in thought.

"Shepard. This was what he needed. A victory against the Reapers." A victory, a small one but one that showed the Reaper's could lose. It gave a small sense of hope to those who were fighting on many fronts across the Galaxy. None other was Earth who was facing a rapid descent of complete destruction.

Looking back to the recording device, her smile faded to a wilted frown.

"Even with the victory, it came at a price. Dr. Solus gave his life so that the Krogan's could have theirs. Shepard seemed to take it hard. Which was why I had visited him in the mess hall."

The Normandy crew deck was filled with life again, people walking about with their heads held high and a new found smile creasing their faces. Others however were hard at work, maintaining the Normandy and fixing weapons. Even then, people would get hungry and walk to the kitchen to get some food in their empty bellies.

For one such member of the crew was Commander Shepard who managed to find some time to eat with the rest of the crew. There were several others accompanying him, namely those who didn't speak much with him. He talked about the mission, any updates from Earth, and of course the Crucible.

It appeared, Liara's pet project turned to the sole weapon to defeat the Reapers was all the rage. Not that she didn't want that, she was quite happy she found something amongst the Prothean's on Mars. Looking back, Liara silently gazed with warm eyes as her Shepard talked with the crew encircling him like children.

"The Thresher Maw comes out from the earth and just rams itself into the Reaper! Taking it out!" He enthusiastic retold the mission of Tuchanka to the growing wide eyed people around him. "It was brilliant. I couldn't have completed the mission without that worm!" He added, chuckling while drawing his eyes absently across the room before falling on Liara's tilted body against the hull.

"You kicked that machines' ass!" One of them quipped.

"Yes sir! Now we know the Reapers can die just like anyone else." Another chimed in.

Shepard bit his lip and lowered his gaze away from Liara, only to return back to the crowd with a cheering smile. "Yea, alright thank you guys. I think Miss T'Soni would like to speak to me."

Liara shook her head, not wanting to interfere, but those standing around Shepard understood, gave their salutes and left to their stations. The Commander then looked over to the curious Asari and merely smiled to her.

"I heard you were fascinated about me. Something about visions and Prothean technology. Was that you, young lady?" Grinning, he waved her over while sliding the plate away from him. Liara looked on with fond eyes and giggled under her breath.

"Young lady?" She breathed, walking over with a little sarcastic attitude that placed a hex on Shepard's eyes. "If I remember correctly," she said, grinning devious over Shepard's own gaze on her hips. "And I do remember, for being only a hundred and nine - I am considered old by your species standards - Shepard."

He couldn't help himself but laugh at her statement. Realizing that even in their thousand year life spans, the Asari look surprisingly young. Having met several Matriarch's over his time, Shepard could attest to this.

Quirking an eyebrow at Liara, he leaned into his seat and propped an arm over the chair. "Humph, I can see your university education really pays for itself on Human studies."

She snorted, pulling the chair from the table and firmly sitting on it. She looked up at him and waved a hand to his comment, "I only learned from you, Shepard."

She loved boosting his ego, particularly when it was needed. Not that she enjoyed stroking anyone's ego, even her own, but a little harmless attention didn't hurt anyone. Even for Shepard who was finding their nonsensical playful teasing, enjoyable. At least that was what she could see from that growing grin of his.

Leaning in, Shepard whispered to her: "Then that makes me one hell of a teacher, right?"

"One. Hell of a teacher?" She repeated, a worming guffaw inched closer to the precipice of her throat as she looked to him with unwavering eyes. Guilty to laugh at the same time.

"Yes, yes I believe so. One hell of a teacher you are Shepard. That is if someone could only teach you to dance."

A audible gasp escaped the Commander as he brought himself away from her and leaned into his seat, feigning offense to her words.

"I know my dancing doesn't get the ladies, granted, but-"

Garrus who was overhearing the conversation on his way to use the restroom, looked to them and decided to fire a random volley of his own words.

"She is right Shepard, seeing you dance makes me want to weep." The Turian interjected, chuckling evilly all the way to the men's restroom.

Shrugging, the defeated Commander couldn't help but accept he was not very good at dancing.

"Thanks Garrus for that insightful opinion."

Liara herself couldn't stop laughing under her breath, shaking her head at how the entire atmosphere of the mess hall has become.

"You and Garrus sound like two old retired friends, living life out on the Citadel. Unsure what to do with themselves." Liara's input merely dented Shepard's ego who at the same time looked back to the Asari woman and gave a wryly look. "I plan on living forever, Liara. You know that."

"Oh really?" She looked at him, still trying to manage her giggles under control.

"Is that so you can out live me? I did not know you were completely jealous about the Asari out living you."

He waved his hand at her comment, shrugging at what even he said. "First thing first, I need to find something that will keep me alive forever!"

"How about proper dancing lessons." Garrus abruptly added in while he made his way back to the Battery.

Craning his head to get a good look at the Turian, he shot a sarcastic look, followed by two fingers that appeared to be in the shape of a gun. "Don't make me accidentally shoot you while you fix your armor collar in the middle of a fight."

The Turian laughed, shoving his hand in the air. "We'll call it an accident when you're dancing."

Returning his attention to Liara, Shepard caught the woman snorting under her hand as she tried to keep herself under control. He couldn't remember the last time she had been laughing this much. If ever.

"Would you like anything to eat?" He asked, while fiddling his hands over the table.

She shook her hand in response to his question, following with a verbal reply of, "maybe later."

"Well then," the Commander began. His gaze on the Asari woman shifted to a lesser jovial look, now into a more serious tone. "How is Thessia?"

Her laughing ceased when he had asked the question. Not expecting that he would turn this whole scene upside down in a matter of a second. However, Liara didn't hide the truth from Shepard when she shifted uncomfortably on the seat, fixing her clothing while adjusting her hands over the table.

One look from Liara, and Shepard immediately knew the news was not good.

"Thessia hasn't been hit yet, but our colonies within the system are falling by the Reapers." She said quietly, briefly looking to her hands for some distraction in their conversation.

"It wouldn't take long for them to simply come and invade Thessia at will. We're prepared, but nobody is truly prepared to fight against an enemy when they once believed did not exist just a matter of weeks ago."

Shepard knew the feeling all too well. The Council, the Alliance. Nobody believed him. It was a sick feeling knowing you knew their impending doom was approaching and the only thing someone who stood a chance of offering the defenses, laughs in your face. Calling you a fool or a crazy mad man.

If only he was dead wrong this one time only.

"Yeah." Was the only audible thing that Shepard said.

"Do not worry about Thessia, Shepard." She comforted him, reaching out with a hand to mingle with his.

"With our luck, this war will end with Thessia still standing brilliantly in the sky."

A hesitant laugh found its way from his throat, comforting his own consciousness as he brought about his gaze back on Liara. A wondering eye now found its way across Shepard's gaze, the conversation would again change tune, this time about themselves.

"What do you plan on doing after the war?"

Liara looked at him funny, as though wondering if he had heard him what she said all those times when he visited her in her quarters.

"Get life back in order. Return to my studies. Give up life as, you know."

He shook his head, disappointing in not hearing the proper answer and words that he was obviously seeking.

"I mean - about us."

She blinked, hoping he did not take offensive by forgetting about themselves!

"Shepard, you meant about me!" Her words defended her answer, hoping it dodged a bullet from Shepard's defiant gaze.

"I know, I was just joking Liara." He added, smiling again while he brought another hand over her own that was comforting his other already.

"Ah, I could never figure out this mannerism of jokes and humor."

"Perhaps after the war, I could teach you more about it." The drifting voice lured closer to Liara, bringing her eyes staring directly with Shepard's own. "I have a better idea."

Shepard looked with a feigning sense of awe, wondering what she may be implying to that comment.

"After this war, we could live out our lives in solitude. Somewhere far and away where no one could see us. On a beach maybe. Somewhere sunny. I would like to feel the sand beneath my feet and the waters washing it away."

Liara could see that she was piquing Shepard's interest. However not in the way that she found, comforting. Tilting her heard with concern, she tried to get a better look at Shepard's face when he turned his gaze away from her.

"Shepard?"

A reflexive snort came out from him as he looked back up to Liara.

"Mordin told me that he was going to retire. Live out his life on some beach, collecting seashells and such."

She knew what happened to Mordin. Sacrificing his life to cure the Genophage. A honorable action.

"Just before he went up that elevator, I told him, 'I'm sorry.' And he just looked at me as though, not to be sorry for him. This was what he wanted."

There was pain written into his expression. Wearing on him like a disease. Even with the gratitude he shared with the crew, it appeared that even the small loses had an effect on him.

"He did what he had to do, Shepard. For us, the Krogans, for-"

"I know." Shepard quipped back.

"Kaidan said the same damn thing on Virmire. You just- I don't like it." Shepard was well aware of people sacrificing their lives for the mission. However, he didn't like it. In fact, he hated it.

Inhaling, Shepard tried to relax while struggling to maintain a smile on his features. He wrapped both hands around her own and embraced what was between them.

"When I was on Akuze, I lost everyone there but me." He said softly, the smile now fading again.

"When I was on Virmire. I lost Kaidan. When I was on Tuchanka, I lost Mordin."

Liara didn't know the pain he felt. It was only when she could make the bond with him did she feel anything of these sorts of pains. He was a very resilient person, pushing these memories completely out. It was no surprise that he had to do anyways. He was a soldier, he couldn't muddle with these emotions on the battlefield, or even off of it.

The only thing she could do was simply watch and listen, holding tightly onto his hands while he continued.

Sighing, Shepard again shook his head, kneeling his neck just below his collar. His fingers tapped at the thoughts that transcended from his conscious mind into the patterns felt by Liara's own hands. She looked at him with concern, hoping he would feel all right. Hoping they would all feel all right after this war.

It was enough that every time they would hear word from somewhere, where the Reapers have invaded, it was rarely any good. No one was pushing the Reapers back. No one.

"Shit happens." He finally breathed, lifting his chin to get a better look at Liara.

"You cannot control who gets hit or who doesn't. Who gets eaten by a Thresher Maw or decides to guard a bomb from Geth. It isn't up to me, Liara. It's just war and shit happens."

The use of colorful language was evident of his stress. Yet, he spoke the truth. It was war. Nobody could control who is to die or not. No one does. The real shame is that in war, people do die. They cannot be brought back.

Except for Shepard.

"Do you feel guilty about it?" She asked, curious to hear what he has to say.

An answer came from his body language. Verbally he said to her, "no." Externally, he said yes. He was lying to himself and maybe he even knew it.

"I-I just do not think about it, Liara." The confessing lips of the Commander was heard from Liara who felt herself stroking his hand, hoping to cheer him up a little.

"Okay." She added, getting up from her seat, she walked around and took a seat next to him where she could hug him. In return, Shepard snaked his own arm around her waist and placed a hand over her arm that was on the table. Together, they held each other before Shepard pulled back and looked at her with a fleeting smile.

"Public display of affection would get me sent to the brig." Shepard admitted, chuckling under his breath to his own words.

"Well, you are the commanding officer of this ship." She quipped, planting a surreptitious kiss on his cheek.

He flinched, finding the kiss a surprise gift from the Asari.

"Yeah, and that for all we know these could be our final hours."

Hologram-Liara leaned into her seat, smirking half-wittedly as she recounted their conversation to her audience.

"I almost slapped him for that. I never wanted him to confess anything about what may be the truth. I just did not want to believe in it. Believe that we are very well in our final hours of life." It wasn't evident that she was blushing, but the way she slowly coward away from the camera suggested as such. Eyes luring back, she nodded her head to the thoughts that began to trickle through.

"Eventually, reality catches up to you."

The image now flickered to her hovering over her desk. Arms spread out and firmly supporting her as she looked into the recording device. Suddenly, a hand maneuvered up into the air and into the device where she began toying with it. Something was obviously wrong with it as the image of Liara stuttered and lagged. Finally, the image fizzled with scattering code running across the hologram.

"Damn!" A curse vented through the image, the figure before the audience was still Liara, however mangled by the code and the scattered image of the hologram.

It then quietly returned back to normal to which the audience could see Liara now sitting in her seat. One arm propped in support as her head leaned in slightly. Her lips ran in friction, a little agitated that the device she had was glitching so suddenly.

"Glyph, should it work now?" She asked, looking to her side to see the drone hovering off screen.

"Yes, Dr. T'Soni. The error was caused by an overload of data accumulated during your recording. I managed to compress the data without sacrificing quality. You should be able to continue further recording, I will work on improving the data storage."

"Thank you, Glyph." A smirk found its way to her face when she managed to turn and face her unknown audience.

"If you are watching this, do not mind what has been happening. Even for being as technologically advance - well not so if you're watching this in the future - we still have our own hiccups. Forgive the little incident."

There was a sense of connection that the audience had. Unlike most records, vids, or even historical journals. One could get the emotion out from watching Hologram-Liara. She never censored herself and always showed her unknown audience the daily realities of living aboard the Normandy. How Shepard was, how the crew was. How even the war managed to tear Liara apart with each new chapter in these recording sessions.

Now, for Liara, she decided to continue before ending tonight's session.

"Even while the Galaxy is at war, and other worlds are burning. There was one place that still remained free from Reaper control. The Citadel. We knew the reason why the Citadel was never attacked by the Reapers, as the Citadel acted much like a gateway for them to enter into the Galaxy from dark space."

Yes, the Citadel. Whispers were heard amongst the audience who tried to clarify what the 'Citadel' was to those who were just now seeing the recordings of Liara.

Ever since the destruction of the Citadel, there was nothing like it to come after the war. Until just three hundred years ago when a similar construction was underway. The Citadel from many historical data showed that it was the heart of Council space and races. All Council races would send their dignitaries to make law, run policy, and watch over what was going on through-out the Galaxy.

It was truly an extraordinary structure that not only acted as a hub for intergalactic species, but was a gateway for the Reapers, and even a weapon against them in the end of the war.

Tapping her fingers across her brow, Hologram-Liara leaned back from the device and recalled what had happened when they finally arrived to the Citadel.

"The worn faces of the Normandy were ecstatic to know they would get downtime away from the Normandy. Particularly me who was feeling a little cramped inside my quarters. Not that I was not use to it, but with all those screen, Glyph, and the occasional bouts of frustration. I needed to escape from all of it."

She looked again to the drone off screen and snickered about her remarks on Glyph.

"You're a good friend, Glyph. I did not mean that in a bad way."

"Thank you, ma'am."

Blinking back, she returned her attention to what had happened on the Citadel to her unknown audience.

On all four platforms of the Citadel's 'arms', people were simply not seeing the war from where they were at. Refugee's were pouring in by the hour, yet all remained calm and collective. Even C-Sec managed to maintain the swarms of refugees. For the Normandy crew, this was the time where they lay down the burdens and drink their sorrows away.

For Liara, the commons was a place where she could remove the cloak of dread from her soul. The beautiful skyline - albeit artificial - allowed her mind to wander in peace. The mild chatter of people that abound the commons was also a welcoming sound.

Turning her neck to rub her eyes, Liara did not expect to see someone familiar show up beside her when she opened those very same eyes again. Before her, a man in uniform stood with two cups of steaming tea.

The crooked smile laid out across the man's face while he offered her a cup. The Asari woman looked down to the cup and the traced along the length of his arm where she met his face. A smile overwhelmed her features, nodding in thanks as she took the cup into her hands.

"Thank you."

"It is the least I could do for the Prothean archaeologist." Shepard quipped, taking a seat at her table.

"I wish I could still do some digging." She added, looking to the cup and swirling the liquid substance inside of it with mild enthusiasm.

"You have another nine hundred something years left. You have plenty of time."

"Yes." She mumbled under her breath before bringing the cup to her lips for a test taste. A surprise look over came the Asari's face when a small portion of the liquid streamed down her throat, passing her taste buds that were tantalized by the familiar flavor. As she turned to stare directly at Shepard's path, the man she was looking at was handling his own cup as he turned to face her, a creeping smile was fetching a surreptitious price of a thanks from Liara.

"Müi tea?" The obvious statement from her was revealed through the grinning aperture expression on Shepard's face, nodding in acknowledgement.

"But I thought it was illegal on the Citadel, even in council space. How did you-"

She was stopped when Shepard lifted a finger, pointing towards the direction of Apollo's café.

"Before the Alliance got a hold of the Normandy, I visited this little café and talked with the manager. I told him if he had any of the Müi and he said yes, but asked why." Looking sideways, Shepard then leaned into Liara's personal space while he peered through the curious gaze that Liara was giving him. "I said that I have an Asari woman who was the most beautiful, captivating woman on this side of the Galaxy who would love some of the Müi tea when she gets back from Illium."

A blank look overcame the woman before she chuckled, playfully pushing Shepard back into his seat.

"Liar." Shepard deviously grinned as he sipped his own tea, looking to Liara behind the veil edges of the cup. "Okay, maybe not like that. I helped him get some supplies through customs and he just so happened to have the tea on hand. I had to pay off the records of course."

"The Shadow Broker is pleased of your skills."

He lifted his cup in thanks, "I am here to serve." He added, leaving a snickering Asari to her drink.

"I notice you enjoy the Broker." She said, placing her cup down on the table with gentle ease.

"What is more sexy than a woman holding all the knowledge of the galaxy?" A shush came from the Asari who leaned in, expressing that she didn't want the knowledge of her being the Shadow Broker to be loose out in the public.

"What?"

"You know what!" A squirming brow furrowed in, feigning offense.

"Oh, sorry! I forgot. I am fighting a war, you know."

A small chuckle escaped from her, taking another sip from her tea. "Reason why the Broker is most pleased with you."

The hologram of Liara flickered, her smile curving just enough where a dimple was visible on her right cheek. The memories of those times on the Citadel would be the last. For the audience knew, in less that a day, Cerberus attacked. Killing many of the innocent villains and bringing the war to their doorstep.

"I wish we had more days like that." Hologram-Liara whispered, bringing her eyes viewing gaze upon the recording device.

"I wonder, what would happen if I met Shepard under different circumstances. Would we have been bondmates? An interesting question that I have not allowed myself to think much about." She added, smiling more harmoniously to her unknown audience.

"Before we departed back to the Normandy, he took me to the Presidium edge where we were just feet away from the river below. We were discussing about memories and I brought up about my childhood. I thought I sounded like some bore, but he didn't…"

The water below glimmered undisturbed, filtered with faint images of air cars flying above the water. Zooming by with hastily precision. Towards the edge of the metallic coast of the river were another oddly warped images, fainted by the water's depth and color.

"I am sorry Shepard, I did not mean to go on talking about my mother and her favorite colors and dresses."

She poured her view back on Shepard, wondering what exactly what he was thinking. But seeing that look on his face, he was more intrigued than bored half to death about her life stories.

"Maybe for some alternate universe Shepard, but I certainly found it cute." He said to which he chuckled lightly at.

"Cute? You flatter me."

"No," he quipped, tracing a finger along the ridge of her knuckles. "I mean it. It was cute. To picture you as a innocent child is certainly cute." She looked down to his finger, seeing that digit trace through her knuckles caused one of her own fingers to react different. The rogue finger of her own hand wandered about across his hand while her mind was besieged by this romantic Shepard.

"You rarely talk about your childhood Shepard. At least not in front of me. Do you have any favorite colors? Did you carry around a military textbook as a kid?"

Hearing that nearly made him laugh out loud, picturing himself walking around with a military textbook as a kid? Not in a million light years!

"Ah well, not a military textbook. Maybe a comic."

"A… comic?" Her words repeated, slightly puzzled that the hero of the Citadel, the destroyer of the Collector's was once a kid who read comics! Fascinating. Of course, hearing her repeat his words caused some worming concern within himself.

"Do not tell me the Asari don't have comics?" She wasn't sure how to answer that, with a wandering eye somewhat drifting away from Shepard, all she could say was the truth.

"We do not entertain ourselves with fairy tales in cartoonish depictions." Gasping, Shepard took some offense to what she said. "I did. Look where that got me today."

Raising a brow, she knew where he was going and gave in to his minute debate.

"Yes, pointing a gun at Cerberus and the Reapers and pulling the trigger. I believe there is a saying for that: Shoot first and ask questions later."

He shrugged, knowing it worked so far.

"Thank you, comic books! Better than any military textbook I read." Nodding her head nonchalantly to that comment, she wanted to know more about him as a child. What was he like? Such questions were continuously asked in revolving manners inside her cranium.

Reaching with another hand, she took his hand into hers to where she leaned into his shoulder, her head tilting slightly to his ear.

"Okay, Mister Comic Book Aficionado. Besides reading cartoons for most of your youth. What else did you do?"

Shepard reached around her waist, tugging at her to hold her while he himself leaned into her frame. Looking out to the waters, all they could see was fleeting air cars and people on the other side of the Presidium walking to their daily lives. Such a view, as artificial as it was, always beat a view of the war that laid siege on countless worlds. The Citadel it seemed was the only refugee for minds that were frayed by the onslaught of the Reapers.

For the Commander, it helped him be at peace with the woman he loved.

"Being aboard space stations and ships bogged down any chance of having a real childhood. All I saw was artificial grass, sky, and water. Then when I was inside vessels, there was nothing but the hollow metal of the hull to witness. None of it was natural until I was eighteen when I saw Earth."

Liara was taken back at the fact Shepard had never visited Earth until he was at the age of eighteen. She could not imagine having been living aboard ships most of her youth and never having visited Thessia until the age of one hundred.

"I am sorry Shepard." The apology did not affect her Shepard when he gave her a small tight hug.

"It is nothing to worry about, Liara." He reassured while he looked up to the skyline of the Presidium.

"Other than that, my child hood was relatively decent. Made friends, lost them when their parents left or changed ships. I was the only child so I didn't have many friends to rely on. Often my face would be in something. Be it in vids, comics, anything to distract the reality of my daily life."

"I bet you missed those days now," Liara briefly said, catching Shepard's shrug of her comment.

"I wouldn't mind it now. Yeah." Looking at the Asari woman, he remembered one memory that managed to flood its way back into his conscious mind. "You know," he began, running his hand along the length of her arm.

"There was one thing I did enjoy about being on ships. I remember we were going to Sol, heading for Earth. I heard something that we needed to help this admiral get to him to another ship so we were acting as the transport for this man. Coming through the Mass Relay, we needed to head for Earth but Earth was on the other side of the system. Leaving us to maneuver through all the planets. Finally we came upon our sun. We never came terribly close to it, just enough where when I walked up to the observation windows, the windows themselves were blacken to prevent the sunlight from, you know, melting our eyes." Chuckling to that thought, Shepard continued on with his story as he leaned in against the railings.

"I start to see this round object being engulfed by the sun. I knew what it was but my mom, Hannah, decided to tell me what it was anyways. It is Mercury, she said. I looked up and saw her standing beside me, her hand resting on my shoulder while a smile softened her features. I could have told her that I knew it, all snotty with an attitude. But I didn't. I said, yeah. We both looked on, watching Mercury orbit the Sun before eventually it all faded out and we left the area for Earth."

Pausing, Shepard looked down to the waters below. Liara tilted her head just enough where she could see Shepard's face shift with the emotion he felt about his mother. There was no fear in his eyes, knowing that his mother was all right, thanks to Admiral Hackett for sharing the news with Shepard about his mother. However, there was something else in those eyes that brought a small amount of curiosity within Liara.

"We take space travel for granted, yet seeing such beauty as simple as that made you stop thinking." He said, slowly turning to see Liara looking right back at him. "Seeing Mercury in the forefront of the sun changed me. I guess that is why I decided to join the Systems Alliance."

"To see other worlds?"

He nodded, somewhat the acceptable answer to his decision on joining the Alliance.

"That and protect Humanity." Liara lifted her face to match his gaze, watching this man talk about his child hood was surprising satisfying. She always felt a little out of place to be in love with a man who didn't much discuss about himself beyond his service years.

"I really did not think I was going to join the Alliance after being aboard so many of the Alliance ships and stations as a youth. When I visited Earth for the first time, I knew I was not use to it. I was more use to soft vibrations beneath my feet, the humming of engines and the metallic clack that my shoes made as I walked along the hull. Do not get me wrong, Earth was certainly beautiful. However, my life was elsewhere. I could have picked a life as a employee of some corporation. Running cargo from star port to star port."

Liara craned her head slightly to get a better picture of his face, her eyes glinting with the artificial light that illuminated the Presidium. Listening attentively to his words as he continued.

"The Systems Alliance seemed like my best bet to getting a stable career. I of course didn't sign up to fly ships."

"Of course," she added, knowing that he was part of the N7 Program before he even became a Spectre.

"I served aboard ships, fighting in defense of human colonies and interest. I never looked back on the decisions I have made about joining the Systems Alliance."

Snaking an arm beneath his own, she hooked it to which she allowed herself to lean in and enjoy the view that was before them. "If it is any consolation, Shepard. I am glad you decided to join the military."

"Yeah," he said quietly. "Imagine me being a ship captain, shipping toys to the Citadel. Who would defeat Saren then?"

"Maybe me." She added with a wryly smile.

"Well," Shepard emphasized the word, bobbing his neck around in sarcasm. "If I didn't get you out of that cave when the Geth trapped you. Sure."

"As the toy captain?"

"Toy captain saved the day, didn't he?" Smiling warmly, Shepard snuck in a kiss while she was distracted by his remarks. A moan escaped her throat, stunned by the sudden kiss of pleasure that enraptured her entire body. Moving a hand to his face, she nibbled at the stubble hair found on his face while her herself worked eagerly on his mouth.

"Yes he did." she said between breathes, further adding to their passion as she pulled his head into her hands.

Hologram-Liara leaned into her seat, tapping a finger over her chin at the scene that replayed in her mind.

"After our short time on the Citadel, we went back to the Normandy. We briefly talked but we both had duties that separated us. I was always in my quarters, looking down at the computer, reading information that was streaming in from agents I have plotted through-out the Galaxy." Swiveling in her chair, she wondered what life would have been like if there was no war.

There wasn't much the audience could guess at what Liara was thinking at that moment. Beyond the facial gestures that were etched into her face, she was more of a introvert when it came to the more personal memories of Shepard.

Suddenly, the Asari woman snatched herself out from the seat to pick at something off screen. "By the Goddess, not again!" She cursed, then looking back to her unknown audience.

"It is late, I will continue later. Save and store." And as simple as that, her image flickered again above the audience to where she was now standing tall. Hands behind her back and smile curving ever so against her cheeks.

The audience below looked to each other, whispering about tonight's session before rising up from their seats and slowly dispersing out from the museum Some of the chatter was directed about Liara's relationship with the Commander. Wondering if they had any children.

When the lights faded inside the museum, and all but the ghostly silence filling the atmosphere. The blue hologram of Liara stood still, her eyes blinking and chest weaving to the air she was breathing. Looping over and over without changing. She would await her new audience that would come back tomorrow, hoping to continue with the sessions of recordings that the woman had.

The mystery of the remaining collection of recordings on Commander Shepard would continue. For now, all that there was inside the audituroum was the silence. A low electronic hum echoed from beneath Hologram-Liara's foundation, indicating that it was on and alive.

However, such a sound would not be alone for tonight.

The remaining image of Liara flickered again, glitching in and out of phase from her stance until it faded into a woman now looking into the device. Her eyes were wide, fear shocking her system. Fingers crawled about the device in a frantic act to keep the device working.

"Shepard!" The woman cried out, a fainting hope in her voice wished that if Shepard is still alive, he would hear her. She looked into the device a little longer, an unsettling frown taking root of her lips as she fiddled a little longer at the device. "If you get this, ple-please." Her words began to distort, her voice filling with electronic echoes of another voice from another recording.

"Then he kissed me," the other voice overlapped the glitched recording. "Please tell me-" the hologram continued to stutter in a motion of her working at the device, with other recordings lapping against one another.

"Please tell me you are" the words repeated it over and over through the burned in image of Liara standing over the foundation of the recordings of the audituroum. "Are alive."

"Alive."

"Alive."

The lone word continued to repeat again, indicating the glitching was not over until it snapped and the system that the museum had fixed began to reboot itself. With the reboot underway, the glitching had ceased and the image of Hologram-Liara was now standing proud over her foundation. The silence filled the audituroum once more, the pale blue hue of her hologram contrasted against the dark black night of the observational windows.

It was snowing again outside.


	6. Tomorrow's Neverending Yesterday

_Mass Effect _and characters do not belong to me.

Author's Notes: Some mild sensual stuff towards the end.

* * *

**Chapter 6 —** _Tomorrow's Neverending Yesterday  
_

"You are not alone."

The voice filled the auditorium, inhibiting the audience in a trance-like state who only sought to remain still, listening intently to the voice of their past.

"Never alone." The voice continued, hand raising mid way from the chest before being placed firmly over where the heart was. The eyes of the hologram looked squarely into the device, the unknown audience of the hologram wanted to ensure that what she was trying to convey was the truth in her emotions.

"That was what Shepard told his Quarian friend - Tali'Zorah as she looked for him for inspiration. She had just boarded the Normandy along with several Admirals of the Fleet who were seeking some help from Shepard." Liara's unknown audience knew of the details that took place during the Reaper war that concerned the Quarian's.

It was because of her and the Quarian's together that made it possible to keep such a pivotal moment in history alive. Today, the Quarian's thrived on Rannoch with many cities crawling across their world. Their fleets are massive and their politics of sentient AI were used as law against AI.

For now, the audience remained focused on Hologram-Liara who recounted what had happened with Tali'Zorah boarding the Normandy. "Her Migrant Fleet was more fixated than ever to decimate the Geth in an attempt to retake Rannoch. For Shepard and the rest of us who remained silent, we all gave each other knowing looks that expressed how we felt about the whole operation the Quarian's were undertaking."

"Even as Shepard kept his focus on helping Tali, there was something else bothering him intently after we had left the Citadel that was under siege by Cerberus." Leaning back into the seat she sat one, Liara took a moment to remember the scene that played out so vividly. People screaming, blood painting the halls of the Citadel and fallen bodies scattered about the Presidium.

There was an uneasy feeling that crawled beneath Liara's skin. She knew how fragile the military of all the Council races were. Knowing that Cerberus was simply toying with them during the Reaper war just made it all that more frustrating. "I saw him board the Normandy with Ashley, he didn't look as though he took a beating, but I knew exactly what hanged from his soul."

She stopped, her head slowly drifting lower with an accompany sigh soothing the tremendous amounts of thoughts that buckled under her mind.

"I hated seeing him like that. Traynor also saw it when I was talking to her about Shepard. She mentioned that Shepard lost a friend during the Citadel attack, saying that it was possible as to why he may not be far too happy around anyone at the moment." Another pause stemmed from Liara who looked to her unknown audience. Guilt slowly rising from the crevice of her heart. "I have only lost a mother. I rarely made any friends during my travels in searching for Prothean artifacts. Shepard was a soldier who lost more comrades than I had known more people as acquaintances."

She bit her lower lip when the realization struck her. It was as though suddenly, she uncovered the mystery behind the Prothean artifact that sat on her lap. However this time it surrounded Shepard.

"Perhaps we do not have much in common as I thought. We differ far more than I would like." She confessed to her audience.

Shaking her head off of those mental thoughts, she switched back on topic that concerned the Quarian's.

Her fingers swirled in the air, mimicking her thoughts openly to her audience while she talked. The very thoughts that ran through her mind was bleeding through her lips as she talked, hoping to fit this session all at once. Given the time she had, she couldn't be on very long when Shepard was calling for volunteer's to help retake Rannoch.

"There was a look as though I did not know absolutely anything that was going on. Which I did, but apparently not to the extent that she did not believe. I countered her argument in favor that the Reapers were the true threat to their livelihood more so than the Geth at the moment. She didn't take my argument very well to which I left hastily before I made a scene." Lip turning into the straight line that it was, Liara knew her limits.

She was a proficient warrior, skilled in biotics, but Liara was no diplomat. She could easily persuade an agent to do her bidding in gathering information. Slip a lie between her lips to get the trail of her scent off from an assassin, but she could not budge a Quarian into believing that their extinction was here knocking on their hull.

"The Quarian's are fiercely proud people. They could care less if the Reapers were just outside Rannoch. They appeared to be more focused on the Geth who were besieging their fleets in the attempt to take back Rannoch." A small snort wisped from the Asari woman who swiveled lightly in her chair. She knew that talking someone out of what they were doing was a hard task. It was quite evident when she remembered the time when both her and Shepard were tracking down the Shadow Broker through the towers of Illium.

"I guess I could say the same about myself when I was tracking down the Shadow Broker. I would not allow anything to stop me from finding Feron and the Shadow Broker. Revenge was the only thing on my mind." Eyes drawing back to the device, she tilted her head while the focal point of her eyes turned elsewhere.

She could remember it all. The wet rainfall of Illium. The fading twilight of the sun. Explosions, cries for help. All of which were nothing but the background ambiance of her hell-bent efforts to track down the Shadow Broker.

It wasn't enough that she was trying to help Feron, but she had unintentionally created distance between herself and Shepard when he arrived to help. She did not want to admit or even think about it, the fact was there blatantly standing next to her and shooting. Ever since their meeting just a week ago, Liara had forgone in firmly situating Shepard in her mind while her efforts in finding the Shadow Broker came close with incredible results.

She still could not come to terms with herself that day when she left the Normandy. Shepard burned into the planet, and his charred remains were all that was left.

"Shepard was a-" she stopped on the word, her mind debating whether or not to say it openly to her audience in the future. Finally her lip curled and her teeth decidedly bit down with mild force.

"Shepard I could not contend with. When he returned from destroying the Collector Base, I knew he made it which put me at ease. However I never fully allowed myself to grasp that Shepard was alive. That I could physically touch him again and hear his voice once more." She looked back to the device, knowing her faults lied in her duty.

The objective six months ago was vital. Find Feron. It sounded easier when she didn't place Shepard amongst that list of goals.

"After we had tracked down the rogue Spectre - Vasir - and killed her. I was rambling on about Feron and the Shadow Broker with Shepard. As though I had not lost him at all." Liara winced at the scene that played in her mind. At the moment, she did not recall Shepard face. It was mostly a blur, a massive purple blur filled with blood and rage.

"Funny enough, he felt disconnected with me. I did not."

She looked away from the recording device, her head slouching with her arms supporting said head beneath her. She wondered why she did not recognized him immediately upon his return from destroying the Collector Base.

"Spectre's, Shepard I am glad you denounce your status as a Spectre after what Vasir did." Liara exasperatedly announce, moving through the hollow halls of an Illium hotel. Eyes dancing over her omni-tool, she was quick to see the data that Vasir had.

"If I did not?" He asked, curious to hear her response. Truth be told, the only reason he actually refused Spectre Status was simply to be 'off the grid' until his mission was complete with Cerberus. Following Liara, he still did not hear an answer from the woman whose eyes were practically glued to the omni-tool.

"I've located the Shadow Broker's base of operations. I should upload this to the Normandy, you can help me get there. From there we can free Feron." She could hardly take in the breathes as she spoke. Hands swiftly moving about wildly to the chanting of Feron and the Shadow Broker.

"Liara. Wait." Her mind didn't stop when she felt a hand clutch her arm, only to be released a nano-second later. She didn't even look to the man who was seeking her out, instead she was enthralled by the information she had found out about the Shadow Broker's location.

"I know your team can help me over take the Broker's ship. From what I'm reading, the ship is massive. Massive enough to support a small army. It will be a challenge, Shepard."

"Liara, just stop." Her mind didn't blink, didn't stutter at the thoughts that were free falling into the abyss of her cranium. She continued to move along the edge of the hall. Air cars zooming by didn't halter the woman's need to tell Shepard of Feron and the Shadow Broker - at which point her Shepard grew frustrated and took her by the arm.

"Liara!" His voice shattered her thoughts into a million shards, stabbing her mind with a pain that made her cease to even breath. The eyes of the Asari woman widen when she was forced to turn about and see the vocal man in front of her, pleading for her attention for just one minute.

"What is it, Shepard?" Her tone rose in defiance, scratching off the hide that revealed a side of Liara's reflection that Shepard did not like.

Swallowing his parched throat, Shepard shot a hand into the air and twitched it with the account of his thoughts trying to clear up. "Look at you. You are so damn caught up in this business of killing to search for your friend. What happened to you?"

"I should say the same for you." She rebuked, eyes glinting with a sense of anger as she jerked her arm out from his hand.

Frowning, Shepard did not want to throw her aside in favor to clarify what he meant. Instead, the Commander gently reached out again to the distressed Liara and struggled to reel her back into the sanctuary of their world.

"Feron helped me find you Shepard. Without him, you would not be standing there breathing." She continued, arms wrapping in front of her chest as she gazed openly to him. "I am killing all who are standing in my way. Is this what you not do?"

Her head tilted, hoping that he would understand what she was going through. It was not as though Shepard didn't understand, but he did not like seeing a side of Liara who was up in arms and ready to put a bullet between some poor bastard's eyes.

"Yes," he admitted. "But that does not change me of who I am."

"Is that so?" She countered, inching closer this time to the Commander. Her eyes bared down with a sense of scrupulous damnation about his own actions.

"If I remember, you spoke highly about seeking the Collector's because they were taking human colonists. I could also see that you wanted revenge for them in killing your former crew." Shepard didn't flinch when she made her move by jabbing a finger into his armor.

"What makes me so different, Shepard? Is it because I dug in the dirt and was a archeologist. Was I a damsel for you to help?" His teeth gritted, intensely forgoing from simply walking away. What he did next caught Liara off by surprise, never expecting her Shepard would take such a stance as what he did.

Gripping her shoulders she could feel his face hover hers as he looked down upon the pupils that rested inside of her skull. The biotics of her hand flared slightly but there was no threat that she felt when in a flash of a brilliant star exploding, her lips ceased to speak out against Shepard.

The warmth of his lips caught the air that was in the midst of formulating a word, was now mixing in with his own breath. Pulling away, her head lurched forward in an attempt to not break their brief kiss but Shepard wanted to prove her wrong in a more… provocative way.

"I never changed Liara. Cerberus did not change me and the Collector's did not change me." He began saying in the after glow of their kiss. His eyes were cold but warm with the intent of telling her what he wanted to say just minutes prior.

For several moments, Liara wasn't sure how to respond or even follow up on the passionate kiss he had just delivered to her. His words however struck her like a sword. Has she completely pushed him aside in favor in tracking down the Shadow Broker?

With a defeated sigh, a frown unsettled the woman as she looked up to Shepard, knowing she had been somewhat of a wall to him lately.

"I know you have not changed, Shepard." she said, feeling his grip loosen as she stood there watching him through the lenses of her mistakes. "You cannot possibly be still mad at me for going after the Collector's?" He asked, wondering if that issue back at her office still haunted her like a lost soul.

The woman shook her head, denying that was the issue. The real issue was that she owed Feron the freedom he deserved. Much as he offered life back to Shepard. It wasn't much to ask, but she was playing pretty hard to get between Shepard and herself.

"It has been incredibly difficult for me for the past two years to get over you. I was not even sure if Cerberus succeeded in bringing you back. Let alone in such a form as you are now."

"Form?" Shepard wasn't sure what Liara expected upon his return. The Lazarus project was a pretty daring experiment to resurrect a brain-dead person back to life. Did she expect him to be less of a human?

"Your body. You should have seen yourself, Shepard. It was almost impossible to identify you, you were after all just a black charred remain of a somewhat visible human body. It took the DNA samples to know you were the true Commander Shepard." Trailing her gaze over the railings to the cityscape of Illium, she slowly leaned over the railings and looked down below. Thoughts trickling through the mind in retrospect to the past that had played out so perfectly well in her mind.

Shepard on the other hand knew the extent of the injuries. From what Miranda had shared with him, he should not be alive. Knowing he had Liara to count on was a great relief that there was someone out there trying to get him back into the fight.

"I knew you were gone. Even with the project running, there was no real chance that I would ever see you again." Folding her arms against the railings, she turned just enough to where she leaned on one arm, allowing herself a better view of Shepard with her own eyes.

"You know," whispered warmly of the Commander as he grew closer to the Asari woman. A hand was fortunate enough to guide its way around her waist, allowing Shepard to gain entrance to Liara's personal space as he continued speaking. "When I was dying. All I could think of was you and the Normandy crew. All I could see were just flashes of your faces. Joker, Ashley, Garrus, Tali. I saw all of them just as my suit was being burned through the atmosphere. Then a hiss echoed in my helmet before all I could feel was nothing."

What a terrible death it had to be. Being spaced was possibly the worse kind of death for anyone to experience. Perhaps next to having your atoms being ripped apart by biotics. "I did not tell you this," she said quietly, looking into his eyes as he leaned into her. The rain of Illium began to pour around them in slow steady droplets. The musical notes of the rain played to the tune of her guilt, while Liara herself struggled to retain her bearings on Shepard as she told him what had been bothering her lately.

"When I saw the Normandy explode. I knew you were dead. I felt it. I refused to accept your death." She added, hands pointing into her chest. "But my brain told me you were dead." A finger left from her chest to trace up to the temple of her head.

"I carried the guilt with me for two long years. A year for an Asari is not long to experience, but for me it was. Add two of them and it was a daily struggle. I was fighting to find you and when I did, I was fighting to keep myself sane enough to help find Feron."

Shepard could see the exhaustion had whittled away at her composure. She was not the Liara he knew when he had found her all those years ago on that planet, in those Prothean caves. She was young, naïve, she didn't have much experience in combat and she held a fascinating interest for him.

Knowing that she had been dragged through the mud because of his death, Shepard did not know how to handle it. It was a burden he did not wish for anyone to have, most of all, not for Liara.

"One day, I looked outside to Illium and knew I could no longer keep you with me. I had to let go. I had to pursue the Shadow Broker. To find Feron."

Jaw locked, Shepard lowered his eyes to her hands, reaching for them to take them into his own. A straggling smile kept itself at bay upon the Commander's features, leaving Liara to continue speaking.

"It was for the best, Shepard. I hope you understand."

"I do." He quietly whispered. "I do."

Shepard perfectly understood it. She may not be a soldier or some Asari Commando however she proved to be a survivor when the extremes sought her out. Liara in return tilted her head just enough where she caught Shepard looking back to her. There was a glint in his eye that she caught through the slow steady fall of rain, along with the fleeting smile that warmed her heart.

"Sorry for dying on you, Liara." He simply said, knowing he could get away with it with the woman.

"Next time," she began saying with her hand roaming past the guard of his arms and around his waist to which she could firmly get a grasp of his frame. "You start paying me to bring you back." She added, chuckling under her breath before silencing them both with a kiss.

"Deal." A breathless word was barely audible from Shepard who suckled on her lip for another kiss.

The hologram flickered again as it remained clear on showing Liara staring back to the device that was before her. She wanted to share that little story with her audience to get a bigger image as to why she understood the Quarian thought process when it came to re-taking Rannoch.

"Even with a greater threat outside their own world. They still wanted to reclaim their homeworld." Liara knew the risks involved in getting Shepard to help the Quarian's in their feud with the Geth.

"However," she stalled with a hand raising slightly away from her face. "With all the support, there is still a slim chance that the Quarian's will even make it out. They are fighting the entire Geth fleet with their own Migrant Fleet. The odds do not look good. If they only knew that fighting against such mounting odds, they would know when defeat was defeat."

The same hand rested over her brow as she leaned into it. The politics that drove this little skirmish was making her weary. She did not want to see Quarian's losing their life over this but rather should be focusing on the Reapers.

Again, she knew their motivation behind it all. Once they are focused on something that is important to them. They will do it and complete it.

With a sigh and a blink of her eyes. Liara needed to meet the squad down in engineering.

"I will, Goddess willing, return to tell how the battle turned out. Save and store."

And just like those very words, Hologram-Liara flickered from her existence and back to the norm of her statue standing over the foundation of her recordings. The audience below remained quiet with few whispering spirits detailing about what they had just witnessed.

The next session would began shortly after a break ends, for their hopes they sought out other places, exploring further in the chasm of the museum. Secrets were to be revealed by other figures of the museum. One such were that of a Krogan tale on how they defended Palaven with the Turians. Another was rubble that sat upon a circular rotating display for all to see, incased in a clear prism of laser grids that were invisible to the naked eye.

All of which told their own separate stories of the fateful time during the Reaper invasion. Each planet held their own stories, but this specific museum was dedicated to all those who died in preservation of the Galaxy.

Yet for all that was here to tell their stories. Not one came as close to the reality that bore through their minds than Liara's recordings. What questions they had, she had answers too.

The war room was darkened by a hue of red and blue as the figures approached in broad steps. Their faces were soon bathed by the holographic display of the war table, greeting the Quarian's who had arrived to speak with the Captain of the Normandy.

Shepard situated himself opposite of the Admirals of the Migrant Fleet, leaving only Tali'Zorah who Shepard was stunned to find out that she was one of the Admirals. He welcomed her with open arms and even gave her tips to be a leader. Not that she never wanted to become an Admiral in the first place, she did adhere to the advices he shared with her.

Now they were all standing amongst the light that glowed luminously in the center. The plan was clear and they were all briefed on it.

"Shepard," Admiral Shala'Raan's caught the attention of the commanding officer of the very vessel her feet were upon. The beady eyes that glowed through the veil of her mask could be seen as Shepard brought his attention to the female Quarian. "As I have promised, we will offer support in the war with the Reapers. Rannoch however must be our primary objective."

He nodded, understanding the circumstances that Hackett and the Admirals shared amongst each other. The benefit in all of this was that Shepard could have the Quarian's best engineers and minds to help out with the Crucible, but he did not like having to stick his neck out to fight the Geth on this one.

The only reason why he even bothered to help them was he heard from the Quarian's that the Reapers have managed to get their hands on the Geth. Which would have been more easy if this fight was nothing more than a provoked silliness over the fact that they - the Quarian's - wanted to wage a war in the middle of a Reaper Invasion.

Differences aside, Shepard listened to what Shala'Raan wanted to say.

"Our first step in retaking Rannoch is helping with the fleet who are currently being cornered in by the Geth fleet." She maneuvered her hands over the war table which brought up a display of the updated image of the battle raging in space.

"There is a Geth dreadnaught giving Reaper signals out to the rest of the Geth. If we could somehow manage to disable it, the other Geth will in a sense lose their ability that the Reapers have gave them."

"Two birds with one stone." All eyes blinked out to hear a lonely foot soldier blurt out his own opinion on it. James Vega was liking this idea. Take down the Geth, remove an arm from the Reapers. What more could they ask for? He obviously looked more interested in some action than Shepard did.

"Uh-yes, I suppose." The Admiral said silently before switching back to the topic at hand.

"Don't mind him, he's more proficient at killing than he is with words." Shepard quipped, giving a sarcastic wink to the man who only wanted to give the friendly bird to the Commander.

"As I was saying, we have been hammering the dreadnaught for some time. No effect. She sits there amidst the battle without a care that we are even firing upon her."

Shepard tilted his head to what she was saying. If he remembered correctly, to which he did, the Geth vessels were just as frail as their own ships. It seemed the Reaper upgrades made them just as impenetrable as the Reapers themselves.

"They certainly have some good friends." The Commander made the comment in gist as he leaned into the war table. "Indeed they do, Shepard."

Scanning at the battle in holographic form. Shepard calculated that the only way to disable her is to fly the Normandy through the battle, undetected and board it. It wasn't a problem. Considering he did fly to the Galactic center, board a Collector base and blew it up all in one go.

"I suppose this is the reason why Tali specifically asked us to help you." The mentioning of the Quarian engineer - Tali - caught the woman with a small breathed chuckle. She knew that Shepard knew her too well.

"That and your ability to blast a few Geth without breaking a sweat, Shepard." Admiral Tali teased as she made her way around the other Admirals.

"So I've heard."

"We'll get in close, board her, then blow her to hell from within."

The Admirals looked amongst each other, their expressions hidden behind their environmental masks but it was quite evident of what was going on. Specifically to the nature of Shepard's blunt strategy.

"That is the general idea, yes." Shala'Raan confessed.

Pulling away from the table, Shepard gave an acknowledging nod to the Admirals. "All right, I'll let my crew know what is about to happen."

Joke was going to like the sound of this. Infiltrating his way in the middle of a battle. That was what the Normandy was re-built for. With their farewells and blessings, Shepard disappeared to his Cabin where he reviewed his findings on the Geth dreadnaught. It was surprising to know that with the recent Reaper invasion, the Reapers themselves wanted to topple the Galaxy on its head. Specifically by throwing fodder to other parts of the Galaxy.

It was a plan that worked well for most of Humanity's history. Overwhelm your enemies to which they cannot focus on you slitting their necks.

For whatever the case was, he was more than happy to help a friend like Tali. Even if he had some thoughts about fighting their war that he stressed they should not do. The only redeeming factor of him not shouting at them like they were kids who refused to acknowledge the threat was: Respect.

That and Tali. He owed her that much after she helped him with defeating the Collector's.

For now, Shepard maintained his focus on the tablet that he held with one hand and a drink in another. The night would be long and morning would bring full of terrors. He just hoped the Geth do not manage to shoot the Normandy this time after getting this close to heart.

The music inside of his cabin softly switched tune to another piece of music he was fond of. It was atmospheric with a guitar playing a minor riff. It was mellow, enough to relax too without having the need to pay attention to the notes that played.

The humming of the ship could only be felt up through his boots while the low blue hue of the aquarium filtered through the artificial light that was dimmed down considerably low. All that there was that filled the atmosphere of his cabin was the music and the ice cubes that rattled against the glass.

Soon, an electronic beep alerted the Commander to look over his shoulder towards the door behind him.

It was late for someone to be bothering him. Tali already talked to him earlier and he knew others were already well enough busy in trying to get some rest. Then a devious smirk aroused itself to his face when he knew exactly who it could be.

"Come in."

The doors flew open into the hull of the ship, revealing a woman who was about his height, dressed in casual attired that hugged her form comfortably. The eyes of the Commander was glued in on the sights of this siren who managed to swivel his chair around to get a better look at this woman.

"I'll never understand it." He began saying, face corkscrewed with lust.

"Even though your people do not consider yourself female. It is quite damning and obvious that you appear to be." His statement only made the woman chuckle as she leaned by the wall near the bathroom with crossed arms. She looked down to him with a smile and replied to his comment with a shrug.

"We are, but we do not consider ourselves female by any standard that other races perceive."

"Confusing." He added, placing the tablet aside on the table.

"I hope I am not confusing." Shepard merely smiled, only to nod a bit to her statement.

"Only when you speak science-ese." Her mind drifted into confusion, not completely understanding what 'science-ese' was.

"Science…ese," she tried to repeat the word in hopes to better understand what he meant by that.

"Ah see? Already confusing me. Just get your butt over here."

Butt, over here. Liara would never get over his use of human terminology. Even after studying it to be used against her human counterparts in the information game, she can still not understand why the need was used. It made the language he spoke even more - difficult.

In the reality of their world, she didn't care what he spoke. Even if it was sign language!

Accepting his partly cheesy usage of the translated language, Liara made a few steps closer to the Commander before he snatched her by the waist and propped her comfortably on his lap. Swiveling his chair so now that he had some balance between them and the desk, he slapped aside the tablet that he was reviewing; only for her to grab it back.

"Hey!"

Liara laughed, fascinated by what he was planning to do tomorrow. "I am the Shadow Broker, I need to know what my best agent is planning to do." She reminded him with a flickered teasing grin of hers.

Biting lightly on his tongue, Shepard haphazardly surrendered the tablet. The Asari woman then brought the tablet up to eye level where her finger tapped eagerly amongst the words, bringing up other files that allowed Liara to see what exactly he had in mind. After reading only a few sentences, she then placed it on the table gently.

Seeing this, Shepard took the tablet and looked at it himself, wondering what did she see that she didn't like.

"Anything wrong with it?" He asked, voice low and inching with concern.

"Not that I can read. I'm not a military strategist, Shepard. I only speak science-ese, remember?" Both of them laughed to her joke, leaving only Shepard to set aside the tablet as he again swiveled the chair towards the aquarium.

There were several moments of silence to which Shepard surreptitiously allowed a hand to roam around her thigh, wondering if he could get this woman anymore excited. Instead of hearing a soft moan, he heard her voice pondering on his tactics. Not something a man wanted to hear when he was more eager in feeling her flesh.

"What do you plan on doing?"

She leaned into the low sigh from Shepard, knowing full well what he was doing with that one hand of his. "Same thing I've been doing for a while now." He retorted. Not giving her a chance to follow it up with another question, Shepard immediately brought his hand over her stomach where with two fingers, he began 'walking' up between her breast, finding the zipper that hid at the top of her collar.

"You mean, going inside a Geth ship and blowing it up from the inside?" She arched her head just enough where Shepard could see her eyes looking at him from the corner of their sockets.

"It's more exciting than it sounds."

_If only she sounded more excited_, Shepard thought as he gripped with his fingers at the zipper and slowly pulled it down.

"It doesn't sound like the same thing you have been doing for a while." Her counter argument nearly made him just rip the zipper all the way down, instead he kept his cool and merely smiled at her. Wondering what the deal was with her and his plans.

"Okay, once." Shepard admitted, finally trying to get the zipper past down her chest.

Only she stopped him with a hand. Her face still looking back on Shepard's own as she watched him squirm under her control.

"That nearly got you killed." Nearly would not be the right word. For Shepard, that was a walk in the park. Going inside a Geth ship would be more or less to what he compared it as buying groceries. The Collector's were tough, the Geth are tough. With experience, going inside a Geth dreadnaught shouldn't be much of a hassle.

Finally giving in, Shepard brought his attention to her concerning expression.

"I'm here, I'm breathing." Would that be enough to allow him to go further? He waited with abated breath, hoping she would remove her hand and allow him to continue on with his quest!

"That alone should win us this war." Liara finally said, grinning devilishly as her hand allowed for his hand to move on unmolested.

"Of course," he agreed, not really caring much for the philosophical view point of death and war.

Zipping past her breasts, his fingers made another improvement and the already siege of her chest. Now he had his hand laying around her thigh, sneaking in tickles in her inner thigh. "But," her hand collapsed again on his that was working on removing the zipper.

A warped disappointed caved in on his expression, leaving Shepard to ponder what was her game. Foreplay or angst?

"I want to hear from you that you will get out of this alive." Promises. He didn't like giving them. "I'm guessing my resume of killing Saren, stopping Sovereign, destroying the Collector's and killing numerous of pirates, Geth, mercenaries along the way have not persuaded you that I can do this AND survive?"

He may have cheated death once or twice however that did not mean he could cheat again. After what she say and after what she told her; he could have a little more respect for her own consciousness that felt for him.

"You do remember that you are only Human, Shepard." His eyes were fidgeting with annoyance as he bobbled his head to her statement. "Yea, yea."

"Then you better come back alive." Her argument and her worry didn't sit well with Shepard. The fact was clear, he was human and he could be easily killed if he didn't watch himself. The upside of this debatable coin was that if he did not do this, then the Quarian's would not join them.

Leaning in to silence her with a kiss on the cheek, Shepard moved in for the kill with his hands. "Then you better give me a night that I will never forget." The hoarse whisper of this man's voice caused a stirring from the pit of Liara's stomach.

Kneeling her head into the side of his neck, she stuck out a tongue which she used delicately to taste the flesh of his neck.

He struggled to keep himself composed as he held on tightly to the warm soft tingly flesh that rubbed up from where his jugular vein throbbed, to where he flinched when she got close to his ear.

"Very well," she mused Shepard with a lustfully filled tone, earning her a bite back with a hand that pressed itself firmly between her thighs.

With their hands exploring each other's bodies, their enraptured passion would only cease to exist within the confines of his cabin. Elsewhere in the Normandy, Jeff began making preparations for the flight with EDI helping him to adjust the calculations. Through the halls of CIC, other men and women walked about or tapped idly on their keyboards. Keeping all systems green. The glow from the Normandy systems hologram bathed the inner-sanctum of the CIC.

Traynor - Shepard's Communication Specialist was busy as ever on working at her station. Her mind was racing, questions popping in and out of her head like atoms of the universe. The digits of her hands were moving about the computer before here, bringing up information on the Geth and the tactics they would use before uploading them straight to Jeff's terminal.

Behind the CIC was the War Room where Tali and Admiral Shala'Raan were busy going over the plan. Tali remarked that perhaps it was better to rest than to stay up all night looking at the tactics that they already knew all too well. Shala'Raan agreed and bid Tali good night before moving herself to the guest room located near the War Room.

Below the main deck of the Normandy was the Crew Deck. The halls were empty with only one person finding himself alone at the mess hall. Eating alone was Garrus who could only find the time to eat when he did not find his hands in some machinery or a weapon. He mused himself with the extranet on his omni-tool, searching new weapon modifications and hopefully hearing only the good kind of news from Palaven.

Elsewhere, Pilot Cortez snoozed on a cot inside the shuttle bay, aware of the impending operation of tomorrow, he was undisturbed and fell asleep with ease without a moment's hesitation. In another cot was James Vega, counting sheep in his mind to actually get some rest. Finally turning over on his stomach, he mumbled himself to sleep to which a hand was loosen out from the side of him, slapping against the hull with a thud to which his fingers unraveled, revealing a thermal clip.

The Normandy was ready for her next battle.


	7. The Jagged Edge

_Mass Effect _and characters do not belong to me.

Author's Notes: A really long chapter that I have written. Hopefully you guys enjoy it!

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**Chapter 7 —** _The Jagged Edge_

With the sun rolling over directly above the metropolis, the snow that had fallen the previous night had begun the melt - only slightly. This in turn meant for more people to be out, spreading gossip and conducting business under the bright sun of this day. The streets and corridors of elevated structures run rapid of people who were seeking their new destination. For what business had brought the museum was filling in rapid numbers, most of which were returning to the audituroum near the top of the skyscraper in their private effort to hear Liara's recordings again.

It was no surprise that such a large gathering had come today. For this session was the epic retelling of Rannoch's retaking by the Quarian fleet - aided by Commander Shepard during the Reaper Invasion. By no means was this the only historical venue that people have heard of this mission. The Quarian's themselves held a memoriam in honor of those who had fallen in retaking Rannoch from the Geth.

The only difference between that and Liara's own recordings were that it was from her point of view.

Quietly, the crowd began to simmer down with their seats being taken upon the grassy meadow. The statue of Hologram-Liara stood quietly amongst her audience. A smile ever present and her posture straight and true, both hands could be found behind her which her audience could see through the transparent nature of the hologram. When only the silence occupied the auditorium, the session began. First the natural light from the outside were shunned as the observational windows became dark, allowing only the soft blue hue of the hologram to only exist.

And like that, the audience below further watched in intrigue as the image above flickered into existences.

For anyone who were new to seeing these recordings expected to see Liara to be more happy than what she was right now. Her face was drained of any emotion except one - exhaustion. A hand hid a part of her face with the elbow giving support to her head. The eyes that situated themselves were no longer looking into the direction of the device as she gave a nodding acknowledgement to someone off screen.

"Right." The woman began saying. Her lips quivered slightly, indicating she wanted to say something else before she looked away, hand stretching forth to her cheek to wipe something.

Taking in a deep breath, Liara started again with her looking back to her unknown audience.

"The mission is a success. The Quarian's now have their home back." Prepared to go on with her speech, she failed to mention something that bothered her intently, much like a needle jabbing her in the abdomen, she did not speak about Shepard's current state of health.

"For the past two days, I have not been able to record our mission due to the obvious logic in that." Biting her lip, she debated whether or not to clarify as to why she was struggling with speaking to the device. Right now, her mind was swamped by the dreadful depiction of Shepard's body.

The memory of the scene flooded in when Tali began yelling over the comm system of the Normandy. She was yelling for medic, Shepard was hurt. This was right after the big fight with a Reaper that they had found on Rannoch, only now it was laying in ruins along with Shepard. Her heart went off into the abyss when she heard Jeff mentioning that Shepard was critically wounded.

For now, she could not go on more with thinking of what happened. Dr. Chakwas re-assured the worrying Asari woman that he was doing okay - for now. For now only meant that his condition could get worse. Not that Dr. Chakwas stated that, however she did state that he needed Alliance medical care. Liara pressed for information regarding that the medical bay of the Normandy had adequate medical tools and supplies.

The irony in it all was that she told him Shepard gave a good sum of the medical supplies to the Citadel.

That was when she lost it. Shepard trying to be the good guy, ends up nearly killed because of his samaritan heart.

Rubbing the edges of her temples, Liara needed to get her mind off of Shepard and what was the next best thing? These recordings. She needed to tell the future of what happened to Rannoch… what happened to Shepard.

Sighing through the lips that rest in silence, she pondered on how to go about in reciting the events of the fight. She figured the only important matter in telling this story was what happened during the Geth Dreadnaught - to which she finally meets this Geth friend of Shepard's - and to what happened to Shepard on Rannoch.

"Very well," she told herself, settling on the idea of what to share with her unknown audience.

The shuttle bay of the Normandy was deathly silent with only a sound of breathing being the only apparent audible sound, amongst the mechanical ambiance of the ship itself. Liara stood by, over looking Shepard who was currently checking his own gear.

She gave a thoughtful smile when he looked over his shoulder to find her standing by, carefully cradling his helmet that she quietly passed to him.

Nodding, Shepard took the helmet into his own hands and placed it over a crate which everyone surrounded. There were several thermal clips standing upright with a few tools that was available for anyone to do last-minute adjustments to their weapons.

The team were awaiting for Admiral Shala'Raan to arrive with Tali who he was eager to finally help her on these last steps on reclaiming their home. There were several thoughts that managed to give pause to Shepard who was about to embark on this mission. For one, he wondered if this would all be worth it in the end.

There was no way of telling if they would truly win this war against the Reapers. The odds were staked against them that anyone who wasn't a soldier would find it futile. In thinking that, Shepard believed what he was doing was for the best. The Geth were under Reaper influence and that was enough for him to risk his life in stopping a dozen fronts from opening. Not that there wasn't already another dozen or so fronts being torn apart by the Reapers.

Another thought that trickled its way somberly inside his mind was that of Tali. She had lost her father and she was nearly exiled from her Fleet. How she was telling him that this entire blitzkrieg by the Quarian fleet, she did not sound very enthusiastic. In retrospect, she knew the Reapers were coming much more than nearly the entire Quarian people did. So she had an insider view of the true threat rather than storming down the door on the Geth to retake Rannoch.

"Everyone good to go?" Shepard called out to his team. James Vega happily took the rifle into his hand and gave it a little twirl in the air. The weapon landed perfectly into his hands which he gave a firm slap to the side of the weapon. "Lock, stocked and ready as ever." Vega affirmed, giving a nod to his Commander.

Ashley pulled back the chamber on her Avenger rifle before nodding to Shepard as well.

When the elevator door slid open, the team brought their attention up to see the Quarian duo walking calmly over where the rest of the squad was.

"Admiral Shala'Raan." Shepard greeted the Quarian Admiral with a head nod. "Admiral Tali'Zorah." Tali returned the greeting with her own nod, there wasn't much casual chat that was going to happen when Shala'Raan also returned a greeting of her own.

"Captain Shepard."

James, eager as always, jumped into the middle of their greeting by tapping on his omni-tool to display the holographic display of the Geth dreadnaught.

"Specialist Traynor has looked at the detail plans of the dreadnaught that your people have given us. Tali suggested that we dock at this side port. The docking tube should still be there by the time we arrive, we understand your people have been trying to knock this thing out from the sky for some time now." With a finger, Shepard offered the Quarian's a glimpse into what was about to happen.

"With only failure to see." The Quarian Admiral retorted. While Shepard continued, she could only see the brilliance and the stupidity of his plan. Tali would be joining him on this mission along with this James Vega person who looked more abnormal to her than anything else. Why did he look so muscularly buff was beyond the Admiral's understanding.

"Once we reach the drive core, we should be able to find what the Reapers are using to strengthen their fleet." Tali knew what the stakes were for her people. This destroyer was keeping the Migrant Fleet trapped within the Perseus Veil. They needed this damn thing blown to hell.

"This is a small squad operation, I'll be taking lead, Tali, Vega and Ashley Williams will be helping me go through the Dreadnaught. Is that okay with you Admiral Shala'Raan?" Shepard was curious to hear any input from the woman, though by the looks of it, she was more confident with Shepard leading this party than the dim-witted Admiral who had it in for himself in taking such a chance on their fleet when they were not ready.

"Yes, Captain Shepard."

Captain, he'll never get use to hearing that from the Quarian's.

"Okay," nodding to Admiral Shala'Raan, Shepard turned his attention to Vega and Williams. "Remember, this is close quarters, short bursts rounds only. Look around your surroundings. The interior of a Geth vessel is incredibly confusing. Watch each other's backs out there. We'll be separated from contact from the Normandy once we're all aboard."

"Sound's like fun." Shepard gave a stern glare to Vega before silently shifting his gaze over to Williams.

"First Spectre mission and you get to go inside a Geth vessel." Interesting to know that Ashley was now a full fledge Spectre. Though from the way she acted, she would rather be under his command taking order's from someone she trusted. Not her own guts. Especially after what happened on Virmire.

"What a honeymoon this is going to be." She mused, though her tone of voice reflected the tension she was feeling. After having nearly shot Shepard in belief that he was still working with Cerberus, she still felt that she was not ready for something like this. Perhaps it was just that adrenaline kicking in. Either way, she was prepared - even if she didn't feel like going once more into the breach.

With the Admirals and Shepard's team leaving back into CIC. Shepard remained in the Shuttle Bay with Liara. He didn't exactly have the time to talk to her all this morning. Neither of whom didn't even say hi before they finally met down here in the bay.

Liara walked over beside Shepard who was calibrating the assault rifle on the workbench. His eyes fixated more on the weapon and more so on the mission than he was on her. The Asari woman, decked in her white armor simply leaned by the wall as she watched him in silence working so tediously on the weapon.

"I wonder," the words from her voice didn't exactly cut through Shepard's consciousness as he took a tool to adjust the barrel of his rifle.

"Why didn't you pick me to join the team?"

The question was loaded yet her expression was sincere. Hearing that question allowed Shepard to simply put the tool down beside his weapon, so that he could look up to find her gazing innocently at the Commander.

Seeing those eyes reminded him why he decided not to allow her on this mission, to which he responded with a detour of a few words.

"Tali is an expert on Geth. Ashley fought the Geth and Vega… well you seen him in action."

The tattooed brow rose on accordance to her thoughts. Now he was putting up a defensive barrier between himself and the woman he love. Was it too much to ask or was it clear enough that she was overlooking it?

"You make it sound in a way that I'm not even qualified to fight." She remarked, unsettlingly shifting her weight to another hip. Shepard on the other hand merely stood in silence before taking back the tool into his hand and returning to work on the weapon.

Seeing this, she notice he was drawing further away from her. Not in a way that was physically pushing himself away, but emotionally. He did this before, in his cabin that one night when he confessed what he thought about the war. Now he was doing it again, but more professional as though not to cause a scene.

Leaning down just enough, Shepard caught Liara's face sneaking in beneath the view of his sights. "I wouldn't have you fighting if you weren't." He said, clarifying his statement.

She didn't like it and further brought herself down to a point where her hand reached up to tilt his chin, so that he could see her face. "I do not think you are being truthful with me, Shepard." She could see past his walls, more so than anyone else on this ship. If he lied to them, it was probably for the better. When he lied to her, it wasn't for the better.

"Please, just tell me why you did not pick me." He knew when she was busy and that was between missions. She always had time to go out on missions or scouting parties. Particularly this mission when it was so critical. Shepard needed every hand that could pick up a weapon to fight back the Geth.

She would have easily understood it that he didn't pick here purely because he didn't want to see her hurt. Not that it would be a good enough answer as he has seen her hurt, plenty of times before. Now the question was; why did he not pick her?

Sighing through his teeth, Shepard didn't see a way past her own offenses and surrendered over his true reason to the woman.

Looking away from her, he continued to the adjust his weapon while he spoke to her.

"The last time I was inside something teeming with enemies, on the brink of death. All I could think about was you."

Blushing, she didn't think it would be that reason. "Well-" Liara began to comfort him only he managed to cut her off by pulling his gaze up to meet her own.

"I cannot have that. Not on this mission. I do not want to be aboard a ship that could possibly be destroyed in an instant once we bring down the drive core. And knowing you are aboard as well. What kind of person would I be to have that happen?"

Now that he put it, she didn't want that happening. If she had her way, she would not allow Shepard to go either. Garrus could properly command a team. Why does Shepard need to go on every mission they are on?

"I could say the same for you." She said, a faded frown resided her expression, reinforcing those very thoughts openly with Shepard.

The Commander didn't take her word, not understanding the duties that entailed with him. She was different, she may be a Shadow Broker, an Asari but she did not understand.

"I know." He added, understanding her worries. Taking the weapon off from the work bench, he slapped in a thermal clip and pulled back on a cylinder, hearing a few clicks that audibly signaled the weapon was armed. "It's easier if I just do things my way." What a saying, if only he could hear her thoughts, maybe he wouldn't be so arrogant when it came to these sort of missions.

In the end, Dominic Shepard was a Commander, a veteran of many conflicts, he could handle himself. Her worries should not be the center of attention. "Very well, Commander. Come back safely." Quickly sliding down the length of his arm, she nudged him towards her way where she snuck in a kiss on the cheek. "For Earth." She whispered into his ear.

Hearing that, Shepard gave a wink along with a warm smile that played with the tune of her words. "For Thessia," he breathed before bobbing his head with a few more other worlds they were fighting for. "And now Rannoch." She only smirked at the mentioning of Rannoch as she walked with him back into the elevator. She would depart with him by leaving Shepard in CIC where she would return back to her own quarters from where she would watch over the mission unfolding.

The holographic display of Liara sat quietly with a hand washing over her face. Her expression was written with discomfort and worries. Already she could not continue with what had happened. She gave a few wandering looks back to the device, debating whether or not to actually continue with the thoughts that were essentially drifting in and out of her mind.

Below the holographic rendition of Liara, her audience didn't struggle at the least bit at her struggles during this time phase in the war. Coupled with the fact that Shepard had suffered grave injuries during his time on Rannoch, it would be no surprised that she would be stressing this much. What was in fact a surprise was how she managed to cope with it all and keep with the recording.

Running two fingers along the ridge of her brow, Liara figured she didn't need to continue. Her mind was swirling with nauseating proportions that she needed to get her mind off of Shepard - for now. The very hand that ran a line across her brow began to drift down numbly to her lips where a sigh was heard audibly between the small gaps of her fingers.

"I will continue this another day." She said, hand now reaching for the device as she stared into it. "Save and store."

With a skirr of electronic noises, her holographic imager now resounded over the foundation, proudly displaying her upright with hands behind her back. The next session would begin shortly after with a time gap dating a week. The reports of Shepard's mission into the Geth Dreadnaught was a well noted one, particularly from the Quarian's who praised Shepard and his team on stopping the Geth at the Perseus Veil, along with taking back Rannoch.

The recordings made by Liara however would recount the events a week after Quarian victory on Rannoch. She would go on to tell them the events in a more relaxed tone in retelling the events that lead up to Shepard's injuries on Rannoch. For now however, her audience awaited by busying themselves with chatter on the discussion with Shepard and Rannoch. Quarian's of this time still existed, many of whom give their thanks to Shepard who helped give them back Rannoch along with many others who had fallen in the Battle of Rannoch. Today, if anyone visited Rannoch, they would find a memoriam statue of several Quarian's with raised weapons. Behind them were others that were not Quarian. One of whom was a human male distinctly looking much like Commander Shepard.

There was a distilled tense atmosphere brewing within the CIC when the Commander of the Normandy made his way over by the cockpit. Ashley, Vega and Tali were awaiting for him but also had their attention glued on the strewing display if brilliant and purple waves of plasma fleeting over the Normandy observation windows. They were about to head directly into battle.

"Three minutes, Commander." Joker sounded off, letting the rest of the team know to get ready.

Shepard looked to his team, giving each of them a look of understanding. This would not be the first time they would enter the fray of battle and certainly would not be the last. The only difference now was that this time, they would be giving the Quarian's a home.

"I never had the chance to say this, Shepard." Tali spoke up amongst the silent humming of the ships propulsion. Speaking to Shepard, the Commander lifted his chin with faint curiosity to what she wanted to say to him. "But thank you," Shepard didn't much enjoy the thought of being thanked about anything, particularly when it came to something that he viewed merely as a job to be done.

Raising a hand, Shepard was prepared to tell her it was perfectly alright. Only she stepped in on Shepard's thoughts in her effort to express her gratitude. Just incase they do fail. Not that it was likely considering Shepard was here but that didn't mean failure would not catch up to them. Tali felt sooner or later, their luck would dry up.

"Thank you for everything, Shepard. For bringing me aboard the old Normandy. For helping me with the accusations that my own People said about me." She moved an inch closer and draped a hand over his shoulder, earning a look from Shepard who couldn't help but smile at the good will thanks she was sharing him. Yet behind that mask that he began to look into, he could see she was being sincere about it all.

"And now for helping us take back our home. I could not ask for a better friend." Shepard could feel the heat rising up this cheeks, a little blushed by such a thanks she was giving him. He didn't feel as though he earned any thanks from anyone. Particularly not from Tali. She helped him more than he did with her. Without her, he wouldn't have been able to get most of the job that required her expertise.

In retrospect, he should be thanking her.

Reaching to take her hand from his shoulder, he moved it to shake it as Shepard looked deeply behind the veil of her mask as he smiled warmly to his long time friend.

"Thanks, Tali."

"One minute." Jeff announced again, peeling over his shoulder to see the appreciation being shaken between Quarian and Human. They all knew the stakes that were here on the table, each and every one of them knew it. Jeff knew that without Shepard, this war would have gone very differently. Without him, would there be unification between former warring neighbors?

Maybe, but thankfully there wasn't.

Without a moment's notice, the one had become a zero and the Normandy jumped out from FTL and into the fray of the firefight that was taking place. A million projectiles lit up the sky like fireflies, explosions erupted with a brilliant glare.

Traynor tried to muffle out the communications that were filling up the slots on her comm station. A dozen Captains were having a very difficult time in trying to hold the Geth fleet from overrunning them. They expected something like this, but from the port view of where Shepard was leaning to get a better look at, it was clear the battle was in the favor of the Geth.

"Do it, Joker." The Commander ordered, giving him a further acknowledging pat on the shoulder, as he himself held onto his seat for the Normandy was going to do some rolls Shepard didn't exactly like.

"Roger that." Quickly tapping his fingers across the console, he veered the Normandy below the battle that was ensuing above them, twisting and contorting to the behavior of the battle to avoid detection. One strike on the shields and they would appear like a whispering phantom. Already the stealth systems were working at full capacity. Tali and the rest of Shepard's team could only look out through what Jeff was looking through.

"My God…" Vega vehemently whispered as he looked onto the same port view as everyone else was. An exploding Quarian ship caught most of their attention with Tali's stomach turning into knots. "He should have listened to me." She rebuked with her hands trembling in fear.

Geth fighters on the left flank of the trench warfare began to disperse to go around to continue putting pressure on the Quarian fleet. If Shepard's team didn't get this done quickly, most of the Migrant Fleet was going to die right here.

"Coming about. Get ready." Jeff said, earning the attention of the others behind them as they took notice of the massive Dreadnaught that came into view.

"She's huge." James had only seen the Geth on several fronts, but mostly on the ground. Seeing this Dreadnaught hanging in the backdrop of space nearly made himself question this mission. Though when he looked back to Shepard, all he caught was a stoic face for business.

"Check weapons." Shepard ordered as he turned about and stood in front of the air lock. Ashley tilted the side of her rifle and flicked against a cylinder that made a small metallic popping sound. Vega followed and Tali propped up her omni-tool, ensuring that her electronic gear was ready to go.

Giving one last look back, Shepard made sure everyone was ready to go. Ashley gave a thumbs up with Vega only cracking his neck. Tali stood by Vega, nodding to Shepard as they awaited to be met with the interlocking tube of the Dreadnaught.

Taking the helmet that was situated on a hilt of his hip, Shepard placed it over him where he heard several locking sounds. A VI inside his helmet notified him that the suit was pressurized. However another voice peeled through his sole consciousness.

"Shepard." The voice young, feminine appealed to his attention.

"Liara, sneaking up on me?" He retorted, grinning beneath the helmet of which she could not see from her consoles.

"If only. I'll be following you from here. I'll give you any updates as you progress through the ship. Traynor is helping me with the details on the ship's layout."

"Ah, a guardian angel are you?" Shepard knew that Traynor was going to give him a heads up, but didn't really expect Liara on this as well. It wouldn't hurt though to know that both of them were looking out for the team.

There was a snickering laugh that Shepard caught, knowing Liara felt better if she knew how Shepard was doing.

"Yes, something like that. Good luck Shepard."

"Thanks, Liara." It didn't take very long to feel the Normandy jolted when the docking tube was now connected to the Normandy. His feet padded coarsely to the metallic platting, watching carefully for the signal to turn green. The rest of the team were going to wait behind until Shepard could activate the other docking tube. While this one was damage, the Geth would not be alerted to any foreign presences. Though it would be wise for them all to go into it, it wouldn't help them much in the long run if something should happen during the long walk across space itself.

The signal light on the door flashed green with another pulsating signal showing the user to open the door manually. With the palm of his hand, Shepard touched the pulsating button only to be welcomed by a shriek as the doors of the Normandy flung open.

Tali began to remind the Commander about where to go. It was a friendly reminder that Shepard himself didn't mind but he notice the battle was still going on just miles away from the Dreadnaught. Looking about, he could see the docking tunnel barely being held on by the sheet of the metal it was built with.

It didn't take very long to get to the other side, just as a Geth fighter came veering right into it, exploding on impact and destroying the remaining docking tube.

"Are you all right, Commander?" Joker's voice came into the dizzied Commander who flattened himself against the frame of the hull. Looking back out, all he could see was debris and the white speckled dots of space. With a sigh, Shepard acknowledge his status and that was he okay.

For what felt like a matter of thirty minutes was only five by the time Shepard activated the other docking tube. The Geth would know that something was trying to dock with them, but it would not have been immediate had they try to hack their way to get this docking tube open.

Tali, Vega and Ashley joined up, weapons at the ready as they did a careful scan of the room.

"I wish I could do something." Jeff said over the intercomm, speaking to Liara who herself was watching the battle unfold in space. "I know." The Asari woman responded disappointingly.

They knew that the moment they break out from their stealth systems to engage the enemy, they wouldn't last very long. Seeing an Alliance ship in the middle of all of this would attract far too much attention from the Geth.

Deep within the hulls of the Dreadnaught, the team were making their way through it, albeit slowly. Heavy resistance were found in every corridor.

"There goes that sonofabitch flashlight head." Vega taunted as the Geth he shot spun around from the rifle shot to the head.

"Move!" Shepard grabbed Tali's shoulder as rockets began spewing out from above the catwalk. Explosions rocked Ashley off from the ground as she went fly against Vega. "Umpf!"

"What the hell?" James rolled out from underneath the Spectre to find Ashley coughing, burned marks scarring the side of her cheek. "You okay, Commander?"

"I can hear bells ringing!" She said as a Geth was running towards them, she pulled out her pistol and aimed for the leg and blew it off with one hit with her Carnifex. James finished it off with a shot of his rifle before looking down to the Commander. Taking her by the hand, he brought her up to her feet before looking around for Shepard. "Good thing those weren't funereal bells."

"One more floor," Tali said, waving her arm towards a very large door. The rest of the team got the gist and struggled to keep together as they were being constantly flanked by Geth troopers.

Meanwhile aboard the Normandy, Liara was frantically trying to keep Shepard up to date against waves of constant chatter that was going on inside the Geth Dreadnaught. It was hardly unusual to know the Geth were sending them inaccurate information on the whereabouts of enemy signatures. Though from what she was hearing, Shepard was doing well enough to keep the team alive this far as they made their way, shot by shot, to the Drive Core.

"This will take a while, Shepard. Give me some time." Tali moved over by the console door as her hand hovered over the console. Her omni-tool glowed out from her arm, allowing the Quarian woman to began her hacking on the door.

The rest of the team took up holding positions, their weapons giving each a new thermal clip while the old ones were ejected out with hardened clanks sounding off of their useless nature.

"Damnit Shepard, hurry it up!" Jeff was becoming antsy at the sight of the Quarian fleet being torn apart by the Geth. If Shepard didn't shut this Dreadnaught down soon enough, he would not have a choice but to intervene. This mean going against Shepard's orders, not something he would like to go against. However, their time was dwindling to just float in space, while one by one, the Quarian Fleet were losing people.

"We need to hurry, Tali!" Shepard shouted over the shots that were being fired within the chasm of the halls. "Almost there!" She could feel the heat emitting from behind as Vega shouted for another thermal clip from Ashley. She tossed one over, nodding for him to watching out as a Geth approached their vicinity.

Pulling the weapon up and over from behind cover, James focused on his aim on one particular Geth who looked like he was aiming for Shepard. With a gentle tap of the trigger, the rifle bucked and the projectile slammed like a meteorite, tearing apart the Geth's head.

"There!" She slammed her fist on the door, pulling away just in time for Shepard and his team to rush in before they were over run by Geth. Joining them, she sealed the door with her omni-tool. It wouldn't be enough to hold back their reinforcements but it should be just enough to shut down the Reaper signal.

"What the hell is that?" Tali was too busy to look over her shoulder to see what the rest of her team was looking at. With another few clicks, the door was practically jammed - for now.

"Legion." Did she hear that right? Turning about face, she lifted her chin to see the visual image that everyone else was seeing. There in the middle of the Drive Core was a Geth with the familiar armor plating of N7.

"Who?" Ashley was further confused when both Tali and Shepard walked about it, with Tali scanning the lifeless Geth hanging by contraptions that kept him in the middle of the drive core. "This cannot be." The Quarian woman couldn't believe it. Legion was the Reaper device for their signal?

"It is."

The other Human Spectre was still a little lost on who this was. Feeling frustrated by the lag of information, Ashley stepped in between Shepard and the Quarian woman as she flagged her hand into the direction of the lifeless Geth.

"Who the hell is this, Shepard?" Her face construed with irritation, wondering what exactly this was that got their attention all in a knot.

"This unit does not have a classification or a name." The voice of the Geth jolted the unexpected forces before it, causing Ashley to raise her rifle along with Vega, unknowingly not seeing Shepard or Tali raising their weapons. "This thing is talking to us!" James said, imitating the thoughts that were going through Ashley's mind as well.

The sole single source of light on the head of this Geth lifted up and adjusted accordingly, scanning the carbon-based life forms that were present. It knew that it was quite unusual to find organic beings within the hub of a Geth Dreadnaught. Highly unusual. But not for the one called Shepard, Commander.

"I am however called Legion, a name given to me appropriately by the Normandy AI - EDI."

"You had a freaking Geth on the Normandy?" Ashley shot a grave look of distress to Shepard. Did he really go off the walls when he joined Cerberus? She had so many questions to ask of him, even to the point of torturing for answers but this was not the time.

Shepard could see the faces of confusion amongst Ashley and James, but knowing they were running out of time, he figured he would entail them with details as they escaped from this behemoth. "How did you end up here, Legion?"

There was a brief conversation on how Legion ended up on a Geth Dreadnaught, with much of the confusion still swirling about in Ashley and James's head. Both of them look at each other, equally and understandably fearing this thing was a trap for them.

"If you release me, the Reaper signal that I am being used to transmit will cease. There is a downside to this effect. Once you have released me, the Geth will focused all of their attention onto us. We must leave immediately afterwards." Scanning Shepard's face, Legion understood a subtle change of his expression with doubt. Doubt that he was at all telling the truth. Then again, after proving his worth with the Collector's, perhaps Shepard would abide with his consciousness and release him.

Tali on the other hand had other thoughts. With a hand, Tali brought the Commander away from Legion just enough where she could talk to him privately.

"I do not think this is a good idea, Shepard. He is Geth and he has been in the hands of the Reapers. I advise we destroy him."

Ashley, over hearing their conversation also agreed by stepping in and acknowledging Tali's advice. "I don't trust this thing either Shepard. Let's just destroy this thing and get back to the Normandy."

The Commander wasn't too eager to jump on board with destroying him. Not yet. Taking their words to heart, he pulled away from the group and stood before Legion with his weapon relaxed over his arms. "If we release you," Shepard began, eyeing the trapped Geth. "Then the signal will stop?"

Legion tilted his head, taking a microsecond to break down his words, tone, voice and muscle movements of his face to discern whether or not he was going to betray him later. Finding none of the signs to match, Legion agreed.

"Yes."

Liara was hearing the entire conversation thanks in part with Shepard's suit. She knew about this Legion when Shepard mentioned when she became the Shadow Broker. He remarked about a Geth that was truly valued amongst his team. If she had anything to say about it, Liara would inquire systematic tests to ensure that this Legion had not been corrupted by Reaper software.

Though hardly anyone would call the Reaper code 'software'.

"Then let's do it." Shepard gave a nod to the wearing Tali who took a hesitated step to the console. Looking over the console, she managed to release couplings, freeing Legion from his grip from the Reapers. With a metallic pang against the foundation of this device, Legion rose up and walked over to Shepard, thanking him in private.

"This unit gives our thanks to you."

"Tell me when we are all aboard the Norma-" Shepard couldn't even finish his words when the ship violently shuddered, nearly causing them all to fall over.

"Ah shit!" James cursed, gaining his bearings again as he stood up. "Is that what I think that was?"

Tali look above, knowing pass these hulls was her people firing upon them. "We need to leave now."

"You do not have to say that twice!" Ashley mused as she waited for further orders from Shepard.

The explosion that rocked the Dreadnaught could be viewed from the outside, where Jeff took notice of the situation that was turning. The Migrant Fleet were pushing forward by focusing their strikes on the flagship.

"Oh crap. Commander, the fleet is firing on you." What Jeff was telling them, they already figured as much.

"Damnit!" Liara vented the frustration with a curse, hand gliding over her own console to see if she could send a message to the Admirals of those ships.

"Thanks Joker."

Legion stepped forward, showing the way where they could leave. "The Dreadnaught will retract all docking ports in preparation to retreat, we will have no access to escape."

"Then what is?" Ashley shouted over the loud cacophony of explosions. The Geth simply looked to the other Human and flickered the panels around his head. "Geth fighters will allow us to escape from this vessel."

"Cute," Vega quipped.

"Joker, we'll be hitching a ride on a Geth fighter. We'll be coming to you." Looking back to the rest of his time, he shouldered the rifle and brought out a pistol.

"Let's move out!" Without a second more, Shepard followed the Geth who was leading them either to their freedom or to their deaths. Though Ashley, Vega and Tali did not have much a choice in these matters as the ship was being ripped apart by her own people.

"Shepard, the Dreadnaught won't last long." Liara reminded the Commander of the already deteriorating situation. "I know!" He shouted in his helmet. "This way." Legion began running towards a hull that opened up into a clustered space of catwalks with neatly rowed fighters.

"Flashlights, three o'clock!" Ashley sounded off, kneeling to one knee as she took aim and fired a short burst of rounds. The Geth upon a higher elevated position took the hits and quickly fell off to its death.

"This is Admiral Shala'Raan, cease fire on the Dreadnaught! We have our own people aboard that ship!" The Admiral Quarian in the war room struggled to contact the lead Admiral who was leading the attack. Only she was getting silence as a response.

Another explosion erupted, tearing a massive hole in the hull in which the shuttle bay began to lose its artificial gravity. The magnetic soles of their boots allowed each of them to continue marching through the peril of their gauntlet. With another shot, Vega managed to blow a hole in the chest of a Geth attacker as he knocked it off its feet with the butt of his rifle.

Liara stood back from her console, she could see the Dreadnaught's engines failing, only for the rest of the ship to begin self-destruction.

The Geth leader of their party soon arrived to one fighter, waving to his organic comrades to get aboard. James was the first, followed by Tali. Ashley and Shepard were giving them covering fire as Ashley looked behind her in time to see Legion waiting for them. Giving a notifying pat on Shepard's shoulder, she retreated back into the ship.

"Commander, it would be a good time as any to get out now!" Jeff shouted into Shepard's helmet. Knowing it was well pass his stay, the Commander turned about in time to began making his final run to the fighter.

"Oh shit, Commander! Watch O-" With a resounding scream, a horrific screech followed along with a brilliant array of pure white flashing the slit view of his helmet, the force knocking him against a pillar as the catwalk that lead to the fighter disintegrated. The fighter itself becoming dislodged from the volley of the slug began to drift helplessly into the void of space, leaving Shepard alone aboard the Dreadnaught.

"CEASE FIRE IMMEDIATELY!" The Admiral's voice shouted frantically, her hands gripping the very edge of the table, her shouting causing those near by to look over her shoulder, shocked to hear a Quarian yelling. Yet the fleet did not obey and continued with their firing.

"Fuck this, we're going in." Disengaging stealth systems, Jeff maneuvered the Normandy to see if he could get the Commander before the Quarian's rip that Dreadnaught a new hole.

"Where is he?" Tali pulled back to see the hatch of the fighter was still open but she could not see where Shepard was. "Shit!" Vega through his helmet could not see anything either beyond the shadow of smoke left in by the explosion.

Liara stood up, her hand reaching to grab the console as she switched to a private channel of his helmet. "Shepard?" Her voice fickle with weakness called him out again. "Shepard?" She knew this was going to happen. She knew never to abandon him like this! What was she thinking? "Shepard!"

"Lieutenant Commander Shepard, torso armor damaged, shoulder armor critical. Warning, oxygen at thirteen percent and falling. Pressure is falling. Advisement, seek a pressurized space immediately." The VI inside his suit warned the unconscious Commander who was drifting within the shuttle bay. The ship that he needed to reach was now too far away. Explosions from the slugs of the Migrant Fleet continued their barrage, hoping that the Reaper signal will finally end - something of which had already ended minutes prior.

In the vacuum of space, only the vibrations of the battle could be felt through the trembling armor. There was no atmosphere for which sound could travel through. There was a certain amount of irony for when a battle took place, there was only silence that inhibited their world.

"Shepard!" A voice crackled through the comm systems of the helmet, awakening the Commander as he moaned with pain. A glare of white light shined through the slits of his helmet, earning a hand to intervene him between the glare and his eyes.

The Normandy came to a drifting stop, seeing the Geth fighter was drifting slowly away from the Dreadnaught as the continue barrage of slugs vanquished the Dreadnaught's last life.

"We need to go back for him!" Ashley shouted at Legion who gripped the handle of the fighter. He only looked to her then without emotion, looked back to the dark cloud of smoke that hindered their ability to see if he was still there.

"We cannot." The machine told her. "Screw you!" Ashley tried to make her way out from the fighter but was pulled back by Vega and Tali who tried to stay aboard until the Normandy could get them.

Another crippling explosion began the chain reaction. The Dreadnaught was immediately split into two, the engine becoming critical while the other half of which Shepard was still on remained in space, drifting towards the nearby planet.

"Get up!" Liara shouted at her console. Glyph only looking on to see what was bothering her.

"Lieutenant Commander Shepard, oxygen is dangerously at three percent." The VI suit again warned its user of the current situation. A hand gripped of what was left of the hand rail as the figure brought about both of his feet against the edge of the destroyed walk way, preparing to give himself a boost towards space. "Please replace oxygen supply." The words repeated, but another word continued to force itself through the speakers as Shepard propped himself at the edge of the Dreadnaught.

"Shit, where is he?" The searchlight on the side of the Normandy switched on, just in time to catch a drifting figure covered in the black goop smoke shot out from the Dreadnaught.

Shifting the Normandy about, the shuttle bay opened up, revealing light as the fighter itself drifted towards the belly of the Normandy.

"Fire!" The Quarian Admiral shouted, all ships capable of firing focused their last volley on the Dreadnaught, hurdling massive powerful slugs into the weak points of both halves of the Dreadnaught.

The long protruding black cloud of smoke soon broke away to reveal the familiar grey coated armor as it made its way towards the Normandy. Now the Dreadnaught sat in the sky as the last volley of slugs pounded through the shuttle bay, sending a massive explosion that ripped the Dreadnaught into dozens of shards and metallic projectiles. Fire billowed out like a demon screaming for air as it was snuffed out by the coldness of space.

The fighter made it roughly inside the Normandy, just enough to fit in as they notice Shepard's body slowly moving into the shuttle bay itself. Legion pulled himself out from the fighter, helping the others as he then went down from the fighter onto the precipice of the shuttle bay door's, hoping to catch Shepard's body as he freely made his way towards them. The body hit Legion hard enough that they were both twirling inside the shuttle bay until the doors were close again. Artificial gravity returning in full force.

"Take his helmet off!" Vega shouted, dropping his gear to rush over to the body that laid on the hull of the shuttle bay. Liara was already standing by when the elevator rushed open, her own mask covering partial of her face as she ran over by the scene of where everyone huddled around Shepard's body.

"Not advisable. Atmosphere has not returned." Legion reminded them.

"Joker, give us atmosphere!" Liara shouted as she made her way over by Shepard's body. Dropping to her knee's, she coupled with the oxygen tank that she had huddled underneath her arms and waited for the familiar hiss that audibly signaled to them of the atmosphere.

When atmosphere and pressure returned, Liara didn't waste time in taking his helmet off as she slipped in the oxygen mask over his mouth and nose. "Breathe in slowly." She told him, running a hand comfortingly over his hair. Ashley somberly stepped in from behind Tali who was also kneeling down, her omni-tool scanning for injuries he may have suffered. She looked onto him with a frown, knowing that he had escaped death once, could he escape it again?

Truly a morbid thought that she found disgusting. Looking away, she couldn't see him in that state and only busied herself with something else as the others worked on resuscitating him.

"Come on, come back to us." Liara watched to see if his eyes would return to her. Tali could not find any injuries of concern except for several bruises and a fractured rib. Nothing that could be mended with. Looking up, she saw Liara huddling over Shepard and worryingly so.

Everyone then heard a sharp inhale coming from the lying body of Shepard. Chest rising in solitude to the fresh air streaming through his lungs, a cough rectified his life. Eyes flashing open, the dazed Commander gave one look about his surroundings to find people hovering over him. Especially Legion who was watching him through that one port of his eye.

Expecting to thank everyone, Liara was amused as she heard him say, "I hope Legion didn't try to perform CPR on me." Legion of course did not comprehend the humor in his words and simply looked to Liara for an explanation. Only she was looking down, cradling Shepard's head in her arm.

Ashley was already in front of him, standing with a smirk that curled lightly against her cheek. "You scared me you bastard!" She teased, lightly kicking his boot.

"Now you see why I call you loco." Vega said humorously as he removed his own helmet. Tali meanwhile smiled beneath her mask as she looked on to the Commander who survived from nearly being blown into non-existences. "Sorry, Shepard. I did not expect my people to fire upon us, even after we told them we were aboard the ship."

The Commander only looked to each and everyone of them and nodded, not feeling up to give them all a sweet thank you as he laid back down into Liara's hand. "Let's move him to the med bay." Liara advised with Tali and Vega moving about to help with Shepard's body.

The solace ambiance of the med bay allowed for Shepard to recuperate without being disturbed. Lying on the bed, he stared up at the ceiling. Flashes of those moments aboard the Dreadnaught circled around his mind like mosquitoes. As much as he wanted to think about something else, all he could see was the fire burning around him. The loud thundering vibrations that shook his armor like tissue paper.

There wasn't a mission where he was terrified yet thanks in part with his training, he was able to close that fear and place it outside of his mind. That moment when he woke up to see the glare through the smoke, he knew his only tether of surviving this mission was long ways away.

That fear struck back.

"How are we doing, Commander?" Dr. Chakwas voice snuck in on Shepard who blinked with mild surprise overriding his face as he turned to find the woman looming over him. "Good, I suppose."

A brow lick the strands of hair that hanged just above her eye. She wasn't sure what 'suppose' meant, even when most of her patience's tell her that. "Any respiratory issues?"

"Such as breathing?" Shepard grinned beneath that exterior that he called a face, knowingly causing Chakwas some grief as she gave a playful hit on his arm. "You know exactly what I mean, Commander."

"Yeah, I am breathing well. Medi-gel is working. I can't feel any of the pain on my rib."

She nodded, tapping her fingers across the screen of her tablet. "Good to hear." Looking over her shoulder, her attention was drawn by a new visitor who was here to see the Commander. "Hmm," seeing Liara here, Dr. Chakwas felt it would do a world of good for Shepard to find her here to see him. "You have a visitor. I'll leave you two alone." Walking away, Shepard brought up his head just enough to find the familiar Asari woman walking over to where he was on the cot.

Her face drew worry while a hand reached down to touch the threads of his clothing, taking note of the bruises that etched on his arm. "Hey Liara," the quiet tone from the Commander took Liara's eyes to meet his own, finding that he was perfectly all right.

"Hello, Shepard." She greeted back, smiling warmly at him.


	8. Talk to Me

_Mass Effect _and characters do not belong to me.

Author's Notes: Sorry this took a while, real life is biting me and I havn't had much time to write this chapter. I had to do several re-writes to get the emotion correct as my mind was not settled on which direction I wanted to go. I eventually figured I need to give a break in the story before I proceeded with a more important and action-filled chapter that details Shepard's near death experience. Hopefully this chapter is satisfying!

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**Chapter 8 —** _Talk to Me_

The gathering of museum patrons quickly engulfed the whole of the auditorium. The symphony of voices simmered to the silence at the alerting hum of electronics originating from the holographic foundation. Many of the faces who awaited patiently of Hologram-Liara to continue the session were rewarded with their patience's with a flicker and a stutter of her blue-purple hue of the hologram. The image of her standing in a statue-like posture shuttered to a new image of her with her back to the recording capsule. Her eyeing witness looked on with intrigue, understanding that in this part of her sessions, she was demoralized by the state of Shepard's condition.

Fingers tapping idly to the information being sent between her console and to numerous Shadow Broker agents, she felt a little more than uplifted by the news when Joker told her that morning they will be getting guests within the next few hours. SSV Houston, a cruiser make shifted into more of a medical vessel was going to pay a visit with the Normandy as soon as they left Rannoch and meet them within Alliance Space.

With the war raging, knowing that most of the Alliance brass looked up to Shepard at these times of darkness nearly made Liara do something unforgivable. She pondered with no clear answer for hours, on her bed alone with the lights lowered. The idea of taking Shepard and steal the Kodiak so they could escape from all of this has crossed her mind more than twice. The war was taking a toll on him, but it seemed that anyone outside of the Normandy didn't realize that. Except for Hackett who Liara trusted. Anderson, Shepard's good friend and former commanding officer of the Normandy did not see Shepard the same way Hackett did.

They were all counting on him to get the job done, but it wasn't enough. Twice already Shepard nearly lost his life just to help the Quarian's. And how could she forget about the event prior to this war? When Shepard was hunting the Collector's?

The killed him once and he was brought back. It took two years to bring a man like Shepard back from death. It wasn't easy and it was an expensive endeavor that may or may not have worked.

Could they lose him again? She did not know. Soldiers were expendable in the eyes of the military, especially when it came to fighting a war. However in her eyes, he was not expandable nor could she handle it if he were to die again.

Yet every time she visited him in the med bay, he groaned at the pain when she gently lowered a hand over his wound. He was conscious, wide awake even but could not even get out from the bed that he laid on. He was immobile, but speaking. He always asked Liara questions, questions that regarded Earth and the Crucible. Her reply? Everything is okay.

It was a lie, conjured up by her skills of lying when she was hunting the Shadow Broker. Of course he knew that just as much as he knew she was lying, yet he did not budge to move out from his bed when she told him that. Instead, he looked to her and nodded, keeping a cool look about him even when the pain struck his nerves.

Turning around, Liara reached for the seat that was situated behind her when she was at the console and pulled it back. Sitting down, she then pulled up to the recording device and lifted her chin to her unknown audience. A weak smile slowly formulated over her dreary expression to which the warmth had finally reached to her cheeks.

Bringing about her hands, she laid them upon the desk and shuffled them in a somewhat nervous manner. She wasn't sure where to pick up, particularly when her thoughts were still scattered. Lightly licking her lips, she decided she would do her best in incorporating her thoughts of just about Shepard. Nothing more about their missions, their war. Today would just be about Dominic.

"During our chase for the rogue Spectre - Saren - I was little enthusiastic in finding this man than Shepard was. I was more interested in him and the visions he had since he had encountered the Prothean beacon on Eden Prime. Funny to know that at the beginning, all I really wanted from Shepard was his visions. Each time I tried to see into his mind. All I could view and witness was absolute chaos." She briefly looked away from the recording device, smirking at the unintentional humor that sparked their conversation.

It was after the debriefing on Noveria when Shepard knocked on her quarters. This was before the Normandy SR-2 that Cerberus built, this was the Normandy the Alliance and the Turian military had built. She was small, claustrophobic even as Liara remembered. How could they even operate with so little that they had before Cerberus built the SR-2?

Her quarters were located in the rear of the medical bay, alone with a bunch of stacked crates of medical supplies. There was only a single console that became linked to the extranet each time they stopped at a port.

She would find herself researching for her next dig site as soon as this mission was over with, taking no particularly interest in the rest of the crew to chat with. Especially from Kaidan who, as friendly as he was, would constantly chat about her scalp. Something about how those 'tentacles' that fascinated him the most.

When Shepard came to visit her, all she would spout about was him and his visions. At first, Shepard was a little perplexed that she took so much interest in his visions. He wasn't sure if he was being viewed at as a specimen or an object of interest.

"So." The Commander, obviously flushed by the incentive inquiry from Liara made him feel more cornered than the Geth had been doing on their missions.

"I'm confused here, Liara. What part exactly are you interested in? My visions or the fact that I actually came into contact with some Prothean data drive."

Her eyes widen with embarrassment, hand quickly raising into the air, she tried to snuff the flames of confusion by retracing her words more carefully in a convenient matter. "I did not mean it in that way, Shepard."

There was a fleeting grin as he cocked his head back to her words. "It's okay Liara." He added, grabbing a near by seat to use. "You're the only one around here who could actually decipher this mess in my head."

The mutual understanding made Liara feel more relieved when he had said that. Taking her own seat, she sat down and look to Shepard who was displaying some confusion in the matter regarding the visions. "I take it that this is not what you would like to have happened to you."

She was clear on that. Shepard was a soldier, not a scientist like she was. If he could, he would have rather 'transferred' these thoughts over to her so that he could actually get some damn rest!

"I take it that you would be more than happy to have them." Liara wasn't sure how to respond to that. Maybe the first time around when she was ignorant of the visions, but now? They acted more like a nightmare. Even if they were the very last burned images of the Prothean, she felt better knowing Shepard had them.

Unknowingly both to them, their mutual understanding on that comment made by Shepard were different.

"If they did not intentionally become seared into the back of your mind, maybe I would not have minded."

Silence endued between them as Shepard merely looked across the room at the Asari woman with mild disappointment etched into his face. Worrying Liara, she was about to redact that statement - that was until she heard a small chuckle coming from the Commander.

"Have I made a… joke?" Liara was bewildered by Human behavior. Having rarely made any contact with Human's, she could not be certain as to why Shepard was laughing at. Her naivety coupled with her lack of knowledge on Human personality made their conversation all that more - difficult.

Shaking his head, Shepard was enjoying this. "No, not at all." He stated, flinging a hand into the air as though to forget what he was doing.

"Ah, my understanding of Human humor is, should I say, very little." The way she talked, how she acted. If she was in a school on an Alliance vessel, she would have been labeled as a nerd or a geek. Yet, he was finding her very cute of how she reacted to him behaving like this or how others of his crew talked to her.

"Do the Asari not have jokes?" Interesting to note, Shepard didn't spend much time learning up the Asari either. From what he knew in grade school was the basic of the basic. They never really offered anything in regards to how the Asari acted. Beside their short temper if you ran into an Asari commando unit.

Tilting her head, Liara scratched at that question for a moment and nodded to his question. "Of course, but humor is not my strongest of skills when it comes to social conversations."

Brow arching over an eye, Shepard bought into what she was saying. From how she talked, she was socially invert. How she managed to get by amazed him. Though unlike other socially inverted people he came across his time, Liara was more polite than most Human's are. Especially in the fact of battle.

He recalled a time when he gist about getting him something to drink while a Krogan battle master was shouting, "You're dead slabs of meat!" She looked at him and shouted back in a very polite way, "I do not think that is wise, Shepard!"

Garrus of course could be heard snickering as he fired a direct shot right into the Krogan's eye.

One needed some humor to kill the dreadful mood of a battle. Though if anything, Shepard was more stoic when it came to a firefight. Shouting orders, pointing fingers, throwing offensive gestures at the enemies when they continue to pour their firepower on the cover they took up in.

"Okay," Shepard said, knowing that he needed to hear an Asari joke from her. "Tell me one."

"Tell you what?" Liara nearly whispered, knowing what he meant but wishing he didn't ask for it.

"A joke."

"Ha, well, I.. hmm." Liara looked about the small compartment around them, her heart beginning to race as she tried to remember some jokes. Her mother didn't speak of any jokes. Her colleagues didn't share any jokes, then again she didn't have colleagues! Blinking out of the corner of her eye, Shepard was still waiting, impatiently she believed.

"I do not know any." She confessed, head kneeling slightly in defeat. "You lived more than a hundred years and you do not know a single joke?" Baffled by this, Shepard wasn't going to punish her for her lack of jokes, only surprised by how much she did not socially converse with. Even amongst her own kind.

"I am a xenoarchaeologist, Shepard, I spend most of my time learning about the Prothean's than a need to learn a joke or two!" Flustered, Liara was not prepared to be damned over something as silly and immature as a joke. Raising both hands in the air to defend himself, Shepard did not mean to push any sort of arming button on the Asari, instead he wish to say he was sorry about it.

"I did not mean to make you angry, Liara. I was merely learning more about the Asari. Maybe I went down a wrong direction when it came to humor." Liara, finding herself caught in mild shame also lowered her head in regret to her outburst. "Forgive me Shepard. I too did not mean to be such a horrible person as I was just a second ago."

The holographic image of Liara hid her face when she conjured up those memories to her audience. A chuckle escaping from her mouth, Liara knew that she had fallen for him in that moment, however she was not going to speak of her romantic endeavors with the Commander. Looking back up, she continued to hold her hand against her lips, thinking to herself of how naïve she really was all those years ago.

It was amazing how life had changed her. A what-if scenario played out in silence as to what would have happened if she was not bothered by the Geth or by Shepard. Would she still be as naïve as she was then? Would have she even come across Commander Shepard? Such a scenario, she thanked the Goddess that it never truly played out. For now she was here by his side fighting the Reapers.

"I know the Alliance highly regards Commander Shepard as a man who can get things done. Who is willing to put his own life before others to save them and protect them. However, those records will never share with you of how he was when he did not point a weapon at the enemy."

Intertwining her fingers below her chin, she laid her heavy mind upon the knuckles of her hands as she looked into the device. Eyes strained with exhaustion, Liara was reminded of how Shepard came to her to comfort her in her time of mourning. Shortly after the episode with her mother, she hid the thoughts of how her mother betrayed her and felt hurt to know that it was only too late for her mother to come with them. This indoctrination by the Reapers was a terrible disease, inflicting causalities and turning them over on their friends and families.

She had to thank the Goddess that none of them were force to kill Benezia. If anything, her mother was forgiven when she told them of Saren's plans. However even with the realization that her mother died, Liara reeled from the impacted that was a result of all of this. The Reapers.

Before this war, the only causalities were that of benign innocent people who didn't even know of the Reapers existences. Human colonies abducted by the Collector's, it was a threat that not even the Council would get themselves involved.

Looking back on it now, she had to thank Shepard for comforting her in that moment in time. A moment which she was teetering on madness.

There was a knock that echoed from the door, stirring the bewildered scientist out from her current experiment. Taking a look from over her shoulder, Liara could see the Commander of the Normandy standing with hands folded across his chest. There was a sense in the atmosphere that she got right away that he wanted to talk to her. Though not just any topic he would be covering; it was going to be about Benezia.

"I get the feeling you wish to speak to me." She stated bluntly, rising from her chair to turn around and face the Commander. Shepard of course simply smiled while simultaneously studying the Asari's features that abound her face. "Yes." A simple stated answer.

"Is this-" a pause, Liara knew he wanted to talk about Benezia and her. Their relationship and what was fueling her now. She wanted to stop it as soon as possible and lifted her hand. "I am okay Shepard, really I am."

"You already know what I'm going to ask?" Shepard wasn't puzzled by the jump of her answer, but more so towards how she was wishing to fend off the topic.

"I believe you are here to ask me if I am all right about Benezia's death. I… am." The last two fragmented words felt heavy. A hesitant look corrupted the expression of Liara's face when she said those final words. Understanding that she was lying. Not lying to Shepard but to herself. A copping mechanism that contained the wounds into a deep part of her soul.

If it wasn't obvious enough, Shepard could spot the faults that riddled Liara extensively. The jerk of her eyes that looked the other way, the hand that shielded her from him. How she was speaking and how she was avoiding the topic of Benezia. He didn't like having someone dragging their emotions to the floor, not on the Normandy and sure not on the battlefield.

"No you're not." He corrected her. "You may not be Human but you seem to carry the weight of the world on your shoulders after what happened on Noveria." Was he right? She didn't feel the literal weight of any world on her, but she felt the anger rising from within the pit of her stomach.

Still reluctant to speak about this situation, she continued to hold off his progression of the topic. "I told you, I am fine." She stated, her voice deepening with a more stern tone. If he didn't get the message, then she was going to turn around and sit back down. Only she didn't. She continued to stand aloof to her own thoughts that began their bombardment on her.

She was struggling to disconnect everything about Benezia, but she wouldn't allow it.

"Liara, I've lost friends too. Good friends. Do not pretend to tell me you are fine because it is not going to help. Lying to yourself will not help." Taking a hesitant step closer, Shepard wanted to test the waters, see where things went. Such a sensitive subject as this had to be dealt with a lot of respect. Seeing that she did not notice him moving, he made another step closer now with an arm falling to the wayside.

"Have you lost a family member?" She asked, drawing her eyes like knives for surgical precision. If she wasn't going to lie then she wanted to hear if he was going to be honest about it all. About the understanding of how she was feeling. Could losing a friend be any different from losing someone that gave birth to you?

Shepard simply looked to her, not wishing to answer directly with an answer full of holes. Running his lower lip against his teeth, Shepard nodded faintly with a flicker of his eyes that briefly looked to the hull of the ship. "My dad."

Liara tilted her head slightly to a degree as she heard this. She had never known of her own 'father' if you will, only her mother. Pausing with both feet firmly planted against the hull plating, Shepard looked back with a sincere expression opening the gate of the emotion about his father. Knowing that the struggle he went through may not have been on an equal plane as Liara's own struggle for the betrayal and eventual death of her mother.

"I was 18 years of age, I was going to enlist in the Alliance when my father became ill. He was a engineer aboard the same vessel that my mother served aboard. One day he was exposed to a large sum of Eezo while working on the ship's drive core. An accidental leak from one of the coolants vented the Eezo right into the small compartment that he was in. Being Human, being exposed to great quantities of Eezo effectively deteriorated the body. No medical treatment could properly reverse the symptoms. All they could do was delay the inevitable."

It wasn't unheard of Human's being exposed to Element Zero. During the early years of colonization, the exposure brought on by damaged starships left Human's exposed to such matter. However the quantity of it was wide spread, it was never in large doses concentrated on one particular person.

For an Liara who is an Asari, she was naturally biotic. Humans were not.

Standing silently, Liara continued to listen intently to every word that formulated from Shepard's tongue. Her heart however had a difficult time listening to the story. Accidents, murder, suicide. All forms of death were common. Even her mother's own. Yet she felt the sorrow deepen by Shepard's own words. Why? She desperately sought an answer in her own knowledge but could not find one.

"The day I enlisted in the Alliance," Shepard quietly said with a unwavering gaze directed at Liara. "Was the day he died." Shortly after saying such few words, silence became the embodiment of their conversation. He only looked to her, his expression apprehensive of the subject that sat before them. "I didn't shed a tear at the funeral. I didn't cry when I walked aboard the ship that would take me to boot camp. I held it in. For eight weeks, I held it in."

It was a funny thing. Shepard's father had survived coups on colonies, rebellions on others. Yet he died doing what he did. Was it irony that he joined the Alliance, protecting and serving Human colonies and interest only to die at the hand of a malfunctioning equipment?

No, Shepard didn't believe that. Neither should Liara believed that Benezia died because she was tricked by Saren into joining him. In the hopes that they could change a galaxy for the better.

Taking another step, Shepard found himself face to face with Liara, eyes fidgeting with a gaze against the inverted words of his past. His entire expression became soft when he followed up his words with a few more in hopes that she would understand.

"I lied to myself," he said quite somberly. "Lying was the medicine that drove me further, pushed me harder. I lied continuously every night before I went to bed and when I woke up. However, it wasn't medicine. It was the poison that nearly drove me to ruin."

Liara couldn't help but look down, her feet below her were frozen in place, the muscles of her legs not forgiving the thought that was sent to them, hoping they would move to which she could turn around. But she couldn't. She stood with her head sunken into the dirt she wanted to hide into. He was right and more so was that the pain of her mother's death was about to hit her hard.

"You know what brought me out from the brink?" He asked quietly, nearly whispering as Shepard's expression grew soft and a hand of his reached out to couple with her own. "What?" The Asari woman said, her eyes seeking the answer in the pseudo-form of curiosity.

"The day I graduated, my mother came to me and told me that my father would be proud of me. That was when all those lies I built up to protect me from the reality shattered like glass." She knew Shepard went through a lot. Surviving Akuze, fighting mercenaries on the frontier of their Human colonies. However, knowing the man behind the rank was fascinating as well as tragic. In a way, she didn't see Shepard as some man who held visions but a man who hurt like she did now.

Cupping his hand around the soft flesh of her own hand, Shepard leaned in and offered up a smile to her. She didn't have to hold it back, hold it in and let the anguish burn inside of her. "Did you cry?" She said weakly, almost embarrassed to ask the question when the obvious answer was yes. Though she was taken back a bit when he said, "no."

"How come?" She persisted.

"Well," there was a hitching shrug that gave away the reason, though verbally it made more sense to hear it from him. "I didn't want to cry in front of my platoon. You can't imagine what they would think of me if I did. I of course did when I went home for the week before being shipped off." That she could understand. Colleagues had a way of not truly understanding a certain problem that was left inside a person's soul.

Focusing her attention on the man before her, she could feel the tender rhythm of his thumb that made a circular motion on her hand. Tracing her attention down to the hand that was being comforted, all she could do was smile.

"Liara," Shepard's voice beckoned her attention once more. "I know my fathers' death is not the same as your own mothers death. But you cannot lie to yourself like this." Liara peered through the lenses of her confusion and look to the understanding that were Shepard's own words. "You'll always love her and she'll always love you."

The Asari bit her lip, her thoughts rambling before ceasing into silence as she stared back at him. Her lips trembled with a struggle of anger crashing against her cranium.

"I know that," She stated in a whispered tone. "I feel angry because of what she did. She didn't even hesitate when she attacked me." Head sinking, Liara could feel that anger spiraling out of control. She wanted to hate her mother for doing this to her, but she couldn't. Deep down, she knew her mother was not of her self.

"Yet at the same time, I know that was not her." How does one react to this? The feelings that conflicted with their heart and mind. How does one actually get over this?

The Commander understood the frustration, the betrayal and the love that ultimately intertwined must have set Liara into a different state with her mother. From birth, Liara loved her mother until just years earlier did they grow apart. Though one could never truly stop loving their parent. The fact that she betrayed her daughter and was prepared to kill her sent that message directly across to Liara who was confused on the matter. Confused that even though she loved Benezia, she hated her for what she was doing.

Shaking her head at the discomfort of all of this, she looked away to lean her arms against the desk. Her face was buried with grief, mixed with the taste of anger. Shepard looked on, worried that she was fighting all of this at once. It wasn't going to be easy and it would take time for her to mourn for her mother.

"I do not know what to do, Shepard. I… I am lost." Her words spiraled out from her lips, burden by the bereavement of her mother's death, she didn't want Shepard to see her like this. Exposed raw in a matter that could conflict Shepard even more. How could he trust a crew member if she is about to break apart like glass? She avoided him, her eyes dangled before her hands that formed into balls of fist.

There was anger in those hands with the grief that rode up her spine like a demon. Her emotions were twisting her body into unnatural proportions and she wanted him gone but she couldn't even formulate the proper words to tell him to leave. Her body seized up, arms wobbling as her strength escaped from her. Liara could no longer hold back the wailing of emotions and felt a snap in her mind.

Outside of her small world, Shepard was standing close behind her. He could see the visibly shaken Liara sobbing quietly in the distress of her grieving. A hand extended forth across that touched her shoulder, the fingers of his hand kneaded at it, begging for her to turn around. Being pulled away from the desk, she spun slowly around to which Shepard caught sight of her face battered with tears. The Asari woman was silent with the exception of her body quivering to the emotions that was crashing against her.

Her gaze drew up to meet Shepard own eyes, leaving only silence to encompass their thoughts. Her own silence was met with the oscillating lips that manage to breath the only words that was shared with the Commander.

"I miss her."

Sorrowful eyes looked on to the woman who was now broken, the moment was met with a personified feeling of the very grief that she wore around her. Believing that he couldn't stand there looking like the outside patron of her falling emotions, he took initiative by wrapping his arms around her frame, snuggling her with the comfort that the Liara needed. Liara in return couldn't manage another word, she sank her head in shame into the fabric of his uniform, covering the despair of her thoughts.

"It's okay," he said with a whisper. "It is okay."

The flickering holographic image of Liara stood in silence. A hand over coming her face to which she clawed at, a sigh escaping between the digits of her fingers.

"When he left," she said, a thin line of her lips separated itself from her hand along with the thoughts rising from the depth of her expression. "I turned back and sat in my chair. I stared at the monitor and the monitor stared at me. I told myself - will it be okay? Could it be okay? I repeatedly ask those questions to no one who was alive except me." A corkscrewed look overcame the face that hindered a look of annoyance, finding the revelation striking her down with the magnification of a lightning bolt. "All I saw in those very few moments in my mothers' eyes were pain."

Her lips curled inwardly, biting them with guilt.

"She didn't deserve what Saren offered her. Those were the lies that did nothing but bore a hole into her heart and killed her slowly. I could not do the same to her after death. I couldn't walk on knowing my mother was a witch. She was a loving person and that was the side of Benezia I chose over."

Her hand dripped from her face, falling with a soft thud against the desk. She looked at her unknown audience, unsure what to really say about her mother to them. All she could really see was her mother. The smiles that planted her young daughter, kisses that she could still remember vividly. A finger traced the contour of her cheek, reminiscing how her mother would surprise her with a gentle peck of a kiss. She wouldn't express to those who would find these recordings about Benezia. She was the past and those memories of her would remain forever in her mind.

In time, history would only believe that Benezia was a terrorist alongside Saren. Hell bent on unleashing galactic Armageddon.

"Shepard showed me about the shield of lies. He taught me how to love my mother again despite her own faults. Heh," realizing how angry she was back then, she forgot her own faults. Everyone had their flaws, why was Benezia's flaw any different than her own daughter? Shaking her head to those thoughts, she continued, "without him, I am not sure if I could have easily lived my life as casually as I wanted to believe. Walking through the halls of the temples on Thessia, putting on a show with a smile and a courtesy hello. I may have eventually drifted away from all of what I did. I may not be the same person as I am today."

Shaking her head, the time struck the woman like a hammer of realization as she stared with a wryly grin etching into the forefront of her lips. A smile managed to find its way back again to her face as Liara nodded to her unknown audience, knowingly that she would need to continue this session again some other time in the near future. "Another time. Save and store." The hologram that sat soundly on the foundation soon experience shuttering of the image with Liara completely disappearing.

The holographic statue of Liara returned with hands bound behind her. A smile ever representative was fixated on her face while her eyes attentively looked forward, never wavering or blinking. The audience below her began to murmur, whispering amongst each other of what they thought about this Commander Shepard.

History has it written that he survived Akuze, an event in which a Thresher Maw had attacked his squad, eliminating them all except him. He was a hardened warrior who fought valiantly against Saren with impossible odds, nearly costing his life. Mercenaries, pirates, agents of Cerberus and Reapers themselves all felt the blade of his wrath. He sacrificed much to keep the freedoms they all experienced today. However what much is said in the history archives rarely pick at the smaller details about this Human man.

Liara loved him, it was evident enough through these recordings. However, Shepard cared for those who served aboard the Normandy. He helped people across the Galaxy in every which way he could do. Even being said that he rescued Elcor citizens as their planet was being invaded by Reapers. Any one else would have simply forgotten about them.

He was not only a hero but a person with a soul. Something the history archives simply do not care to shine on about. He feared as those around him feared. He struggled with the same pain as those around him. He was flawed just as anyone else who lives today are flawed. The characteristics of him being a soldier who fought against the Reapers and won are true but skewed to a sense that they make him out to be a sort of savior or a god.

He wasn't. He was just a man who was pushed into a situation that he did not want to be in. In the end, he persevered against unlikely odds with unlikely allies.

Amongst the symphony of voices, the crowd that gathered that day to listen quietly with attentive focus had soon dispersed from the auditorium. Only two were left behind looking back up to the statue hologram of Liara. Their faces were met with the curiosity and fascination about this woman.

One of them looked to the other and said, "do you think she is still alive?"

The other who heard the question became dumbfounded by the person's words and simply looked to him and gave a unknowing shrug. "I do not know." He responded sincerely. Both of them knew the Asari lived for a thousand years. The war ended approximately a thousand years ago, could she theoretically be still alive? Nobody knew the exact answer and believed she may have died during the war. The wreckage of the Normandy was found upon a world that existed just outside of Sol, but the remains of bodies were never found.

There were no burial site, no indication of any survivor.

"I guess we'll never know." Looking away, the two had left the auditorium with the question of whether or not Liara was still alive somewhere. The day proceeded on with the next session starting sometime tomorrow. Those who have visited today would find Liara still standing there just a feet above the foundation of where her hologram was emitting from, untouched and undisturbed. The smile that thousands of people knew and recognized will remain etched forever in her hologram. Tomorrow, people will see that smile again.


	9. Epiphany

_Mass Effect _and characters do not belong to me.

Author's Notes: Is becoming too selfless actually becoming more selfish than you realize?

* * *

**Chapter 9 —** _Epiphany  
_

Glistening above the furrowed brows were a convoy of sweat that trickled quickly over the smooth bore surface of the skin, making its journey towards the edge as it rode along the contour of the nose. Stopping, the sweat poured over at the edge, suspending below the tip of the nose. The rhythm of muscles forced the droplet to keel over, sliding erratically to the left and right, the droplet finally surrendered to gravity's will to where it joined with the small pool of sweat below.

An electronic beep didn't deter the man who pushed with force against the hull, determined to finish his round of push ups. The only verbal announcement were that of huffing of air with each interval of rising above the ground with irritation riling from all working limbs.

Sensing there was neither a refusal of access or an acceptance, the woman who carried a plate full of sweetened meat and bread with a cup of water allowed herself in without a second wasted hesitation. Walking passed the veil of the large entrance, the woman was greeted by the appearance of a half-naked human performing push ups on the floor.

"I see you are doing better." The tender voice echoed the very obvious observation. Liara was happy to see Shepard was back on his feet, though the worry wart side of her pinched her when she saw him rise up to his feet. Several of the bruises he received during those final moments aboard the Geth dreadnaught remained colorfully painted around his torso. A small yet limped frown surfaced to her face, but before Shepard got a chance to view her face as he smothered his own with a towel, she replaced it with a gentle smile that he fondly fell in love with.

"Yeah." Shepard answered with an uncaring throw of his towel to the bed behind him. "Thanks for bringing me lunch, Liara. Appreciated it." Walking up to her, Liara caught a sniff of the scent that reeked from his body. Strangely, she didn't mind it. Considering the last few times they made love, they were always greased up in sweat. "It's the least I could do for you." She added with a light curl of her lips, watching Shepard take the plate from her hands, the Commander then turned around and walked back to the couch before sitting down on it.

The plate itself laid carefully on the coffee table from which Shepard began peeling away at the bread and taking small bites from it.

"How are you feeling?" The question spurred from her mouth, fluttering with a dash of curiosity. Liara knew he was doing well but she wanted to know how well he was doing mentally. He didn't look all that annoyed except there was something biting at his heels that worried her more.

"I'm good, Dr. Chakwas had a good rationing of medi-gel even after I gave most of it away on the Citadel." There was a fleeting hesitant laugh that was hammered with a small shake of the head. "Maybe I should have rethought that, huh?" He asked, lifting his gaze onto the woman who stood silently with hands cupping together in front of her.

"We'll get more." Liara reassured Shepard with a hint of her love dipping into her words. Her strikingly blue eyes hovered over by the Commander who was taking hungry bites out from his food now. "Is it good?" She asked curiously as she made her way over by where he was.

"Absolutely." Shepard commented, chewing happily over his meal while he watched the Asari woman take a seat before him. In return, Liara nodded in gratitude with a smile that curled tenderly to the warm balling cheek of her face. "That's good."

Idle chats wasn't something Liara was fond of. Shepard knew this much as he peered through the veil of the food he handled without care, tearing away pieces of bread to chew on. There was something off about Liara who sat there, quietly looking to him with a meek smile whose life was drained from. He wouldn't necessarily call her smile fake by any chance, it was just a smile of exhaustion.

There were similar faces that drew smiles before her. Consoling with friends and family who were found through the fog that was this war.

One particular image stood out amongst the rest. It was of a woman who sat across from her son, just smiling at him as he eat and talk. She didn't say a word, merely smiled with the exhaustion that riddled Liara now. She was both happy to see him and sadden by the impact of what has happened to their lives.

The woman wore nothing but a basic form of a shirt and trousers while a blanket silhouetted her body, shielding her from others who passed by them. When her son had finished eating, she reached out in silence with her hands and took hold of her sons hands. They held hands for as long as Shepard stood there, quietly watching the masses of refugees engulfing the lower decks of the Citadel.

Such a sight could be seen elsewhere across many species. Turian, Asari, Salarian. The list went on. It didn't matter how different each of them were. They all felt the same with each of them carrying their emotions differently on their sleeve.

What had happened aboard the Geth dreadnaught, he knew she had worried for him immensely. He could picture it then when he was dragged aboard the shuttle bay of the Normandy. Her panic eyes were wide open, her mouth moving to shout orders. There was fear in those eyes, fear that she did not share with him now.

He had only seen her fear once. He hoped to never see it again.

"Liara, are you all right?" The silence was broken by the interrupting Commander, snapping the trance out of the Asari woman who appeared to regain her bearings again. "Yes, yes I am Shepard." She tried to shrug off the emotions that were bearing down on her, giving away subtle hints of her stress that Shepard only took as a sign of this war reaching her.

Since their mission began, Liara was on top of everything. She was the one running operations through her Shadow Broker network. She was the one who managed to acquire the data on the Crucible. She was the one who kept vital information flowing between the Normandy crew and the Alliance Navy. Without her, this job would have been nearly impossible to have complete.

"Do you want some of my bread?" He asked, lifting the bread in question to her. She gave one look to the bread and immediately glanced back to Shepard with a quivering smile. Nodding in thanks, Liara reached out to take the piece of bread from his hand before bringing it up to her lips. Her tongue gave a taste test, a habit she had since she was a kid. She managed to hide it in front of the crew when she ate at the mess hall, but not in front of Shepard who himself found it cute.

Her eyes would lift just slightly but not noticeable up, then her cheek muscles would flare with a wince as her taste buds would meat the soft grains of the bread. Finding the taste suitable for her mood, she popped it in and chewed it as quickly as she did when she took it from Shepard's own hands.

"It's good." She said quietly as she ran a hand across her lips in her effort to erase any incriminating evidence of her mess.

"Liara," Shepard began modestly, pushing the plate towards her to show that he was sharing. "You can have as much as you like."

The Asari woman hastily shook her head at that notion. "No, no. You must get your strength back, Shepard."

Strength back? Shepard had to snicker under his breath when he heard her say those words. "I'm guessing you didn't realize I was doing push ups just then." He added with a coy grin of his that painted across his expression.

An arching brow raised in concordance to the very thoughts that ran through her mind. Of course she saw him doing those push ups! "I'm not as dense as I was before, Shepard."

"I'll be okay, Liara. Please, have some of my food." Shepard begged. He really didn't like seeing Liara in this state. She may have filled some void of joy with that smile she was radiating off. What he really wanted to see was the joy return to fill in that void. "Shepard," she was going to have a debate with this man, only she stopped and looked at the open palm gesture that directed her eyes to the plate before her.

She couldn't win this way and honestly, she did not feel like arguing. In the flicker of defeat, her blue eyes fell to the plate as she reached out again and took a small portion of the bread to chew on.

Nodding to himself, Shepard was pleased to find her eating. It kept her busy while Shepard changed the subject from him to her.

Adjusting himself on the couch to find that comfortable spot, he then crossed his legs as he leaned into the seat of the couch. Liara was catching on to the Commander's body language but refused to acknowledge it as anything but, instead keeping her own mouth full with bread.

"Are you ready for tomorrow?" The Commander asked inquisitively, watching her every movement as she sat there eating.

Liara knew what tomorrow was going to bring, however could she be honest with herself and say she was ready? The question bugged her like the insects of Thessia buzzing around during the hot summer months. She was not sure what to tell Shepard except: "Yes, I am."

She knew what to expect as Shepard had laid out the battle plans with the Admirals of the Migrant Fleet. It was just as risky as the plan he had for going into the Dreadnaught. There were teams of two who were going to make landfall on Rannoch, the goal was to knock out the AA batteries to give the Migrant Fleet and the Normandy the tactical advantage over the Geth on Rannoch.

Legion also indulged the Admirals with a plan of his own in hopes the Geth would in some way stop fighting. Liara thought it was crazy and by the looks exchanged by the other Quarian's in the war room, it was suicidal.

Legion proposed they infiltrate the fighter control room, cease communications and escape with their backs exposed to enemy fire.

"It won't be easy." Tali calmly pointed out.

"We have calculated our chances of surviving…" the Geth unit Legion stared with the singular optical lens at the Quarian as it made the nanosecond calculation. "Is good."

The Quarian Admiral who stood quietly behind Tali walked around the table and briefly gazed condemningly at this Geth before shaking her head. "We have no choice but to trust this Geth?" The question flew by Shepard who was busy making adjustments to the ground assault tactics of the transmission tower and anti-air batteries.

"Yes," replied the Commander who by now fixated his attention on Admiral Shala'Raan. "We can trust him."

It was madness and something Liara did not approve. She even requested that she joined Shepard on that mission when they came to that bridge. He however, stubbornly, refused and told her she needed to keep to the rest of the Quarian ground team.

He was taking Legion and Tali instead.

"Focus on the mission and we'll be out of Rannoch in no time." Her eyes peeked from beneath where she focused most of her attention - the plate - and now onto Shepard .

She hated hearing that but he was right. The mission was the priority. Not him.

But why could not she manage to take her focus elsewhere besides him? Why must she always be there when they were under fire or when he took damage? Why must she be the one there to cradle him to health? Why did it drive her crazy when she was forced on another team away from him?

By the Goddess, Liara thought, why him?

Since the beginning of their run in together all those years ago, their time together had become a frenzy of blood and love. Neither could exist without one another.

"Shepard." A feminine voice reached out and touched Shepard who looked across with a growing smile. However the smile could not sustain its strength when Shepard saw a cancerous concern eating away at her face.

"Yea?"

She rubbed her hands together as slow as she could while keeping her gaze straight and narrow on the Commander. "Tell me. Honestly."

"Of what?" Shepard crooked an eyebrow, unsure where she was going with this.

"Do you think we are doing the right thing here?"

Shepard could make heads or tails of this, her question was vague and even more vague was the look she was giving him. "The Quarians?"

Liara nodded, "yes."

There was no hesitation that appeared to leak from Shepard's facial gesture. Instead, he replied in a cool calm manner that only an officer who believed what he was doing was the right thing.

"Absolutely." Answered the Commander as he nibbled lightly on the remaining pieces of bread.

"Don't you?" The tables were turn and now Shepard's curiosity grew on the onset of Liara's questioning of his decisions. It was not the kind of question he would've heard from this woman but by the look of her face, her expressions were caving in with fear.

A sigh vented from her lips and her shoulders rolled back, allowing Liara to lean in a little of her seat as she kept her attention on Shepard.

"I don't know." She confessed, her eyes flickering away just as she had whispered those words to him. "I really do not know, Shepard."

"You do not know?" He asked, brows furrowing in concern of the conflicting Liara that sat before him.

"This is not our war." Liara said, "this is not our problem."

"What about Tali?" Shepard asked sincerely, hoping to see that Liara was still on board with helping their Quarian friend. He really could not see Liara suddenly turning away from Tali after all this time. Shepard promised her to get her home but not in this manner, that much he agreed upon with her.

"Tali understands the situation," stated the Asari woman. "Tali knows she did not want this war to come."

"But it did," corrected the man who bit down on his lip. "It happened."

"Then why help them if this is their problem that they brought on themselves?" Her voice changed, her eyes flared and her muscles ached as Liara snapped back at Shepard who sat there peacefully.

"I understand why you are upset Liara."

Liara shook her head. The beauty of her eyes dissolved into the sharp glass that they formulated into. She didn't like being 'understood' by someone who was not seeing the bigger picture. They had the Reapers to deal with, other planets were being conquered and here was Shepard; fighting a war that was not of their own?

The Quarian's don't even have a home!

"I'm not upset. Not at you." She clarified with a wince of her attitude rising beneath the sheath of her skin. "I am upset that we are wasting our time, our resources on this war that the Quarian's have started." Liara ran her hand along the ride of her brow, kneading the pulsating vein that was above her tattooed eyebrow.

"Earth is burning, Palaven is burning, the Citadel was nearly vanquished by Cerberus and we are sitting on our asses fighting a war that the Quarian's started. Where is the logic in that?" She demanded an answer but she couldn't wait for one. She promptly stood up and walked away, fearing she was going to throw something fragile against the wall. She could feel her anger swimming in her gut like a vexed demon wishing to release itself.

Hearing all of what she had to say, Shepard sat there in the isolated atmosphere of his lonesome, both query eyes staring at the back of the Asari woman who in return became silent. His eyes then fell to the wayside, taking in her words and wondering about the same. Minutes passed before the silence was broken again as Shepard rose up to his feet.

"The logic." Breathed the man who stood there, hands in his pockets. "Liara, you do not need logic when a friend is in need." That much was certain and she knew it all too well. Did she ever use logic when she was dealing with seedy people in the shadows? Did she use logic when she was tracking down the Shadow Broker?

Her intent was well where her heart was but the dangers that were present could've snatched the life out of her whenever it deemed possible.

"I didn't ask to die and when I did, you were there to bring me back."

Liara bit her lip but kept her focus on the aquarium; the marine life that lived within the shell of its four walls swam indifferently to the outside world that existed. Beyond them, all they saw were watery faces that every now and then looked at them.

"You put yourself in danger for me who was dead. There was a slim chance that I could ever be brought back to life but you did it anyways." Shepard paused, tilting his head just enough where he could see the reflection of her face in the sheen glass of the aquarium.

"Where was the logic in that?" He asked with wondering eyes peeking behind her shoulder.

"That was different." Liara insisted.

"Okay," Shepard wasn't going to debate with her but he'll try to see it her way. "Then tell me how that was different from here and now."

The Asari woman didn't budge from where she stood with the small exception of her head kneeling in thought. Both arms crossed one another while her eyes flickered to the edge of their respective corners, catching the glimpse of his uniform from behind her.

"We needed you. The Galaxy needed you even when they didn't believe in your visions." She explained, her lip twitched to the image of him burning in the fiery furnace of the torn Normandy.

He was dead. She knew it but she was not going to allow it to be true. She fought hard to get his body and hand it to Cerberus. She dealt with her own personal hell and she came out from it alive with Shepard back.

"What makes me any different from Tali then?" Shepard hated being the one who was the sole focus of everyone's survival. Much of what he understood from everyone is that they counted him, at least from the crew of the Normandy. Everyone else outside their crew could've cared less. That was until the Reapers revealed themselves.

Now he was being tasked with missions upon missions that were becoming difficult with each passing day. What was so damn wrong with helping out a friend who in the end would get her home in the process? As far as Shepard understood it; none of them had any homes to go back to. Shepard couldn't go back to Earth, Garrus could not go back to Palaven, Liara's home would soon face a similar fate as others were struggling with now.

What difference was it then and now? The question begged for an answer.

Liara took a step back and made an about face to look at Shepard. He caught a glimpse of her anger disappearing as she raised her chin up and her agonizing fear returned in force. She swallowed hard of the lump that was pitched in her throat but when she did, she allowed Shepard to hear what she was feeling.

"I have already lost you once." She said, reminding herself of what she saw that day when the Normandy came under attack. The lashes the covered the veil of her eyes lifted in accordance to the blue discs that now looked upon her Shepard. She watched the minute shapes and contortions that his face were making to her words. He may not have understood it at the time and probably will never know how she felt the day she saw him die.

Liara cocked her head, her tattooed brows kneading together with the sight of him staring back; knowing the comprehension of her emotions was a chess game that he could not win. . "If I lose you again, I do not know what I will do. The very thought frightens me." She confessed to this man she now looked across to.

Liara sighed, her eyes drifting back down to the chest of a breathing man. If only he had seen his body. Burned, unidentifiable, mangled by the disaster that took place. "Yet," she breathed. "I know you're a soldier. A soldier whose cause is bigger than my own worries."

She eased herself closer now, raising a hand that manage over the lean muscle of his shoulder, keeping an attentive gaze across the narrow strip of space that now reside between them. Her eyes glowed under the artificial light that now showered them. Shepard was never intimidated by Liara's eyes but he felt what she was saying was her damn eulogy. "Shepard,"

Shepard shifted uncomfortable in her arms, knowing where this was going. "No Liara." He stated clearly with furrowed brows.

Liara felt the resounding affirmation of his 'no' and shuddered to think what he planned to do next.

"This isn't about you or I anymore." She could feel his fingers grip the bicep of her arm, causing a quick twitch of her eyes to reinforce what she felt. "This is about everyone. We're in this together. I don't like the idea that the Quarian's brought this fight upon themselves. But I'll be damned to let them die because of a mistake. We've all made mistakes."

Another ounce of pressure could be felt on her other arm, this time closer to her wrist. Shepard intertwined his fingers and brought them down to the side of his waist. His eyes were steady, stoic and serious. His voice made her gaze even stronger, her mind clear. Liara had no intention of turning Tali away but Shepard made sure that what they were fighting for was all the more important.

"It's our war and it is our problem. We can face this together Liara and we'll get out of here alive." Liara bit her lip, running them together in thought as she kept her gaze on his. Was he right? Liara wasn't completely sure.

After all, it was her who brought him back from the grip of death. It was her who now told him to fight this losing war. Now here she was, doubting everything. Doubting him.

She could have told him she didn't believe him, that she didn't understand why it needed to be their problem. Thessia, Earth, Palaven, other worlds were burning and here they were; fighting a war that was not of their own doing.

The realist in her wished to scream at him to show him the side of reality. However, she was less of a realist and more 'human' as Shepard would say. Looking down, Liara gave a sigh and cleansed her mind of any doubts. She needed to focus on the mission.

Raising her chin, she looked back across to Shepard who still held onto her with ease, hoping that what he said changed her mind or in the least allowed her to make sense of their own reality. Her throat contracted to the thoughts that send signals down from her brain, ready to agree with Shepard. Yet her air was caught between her throat and tongue as she felt a warm embrace engulfing her.

Suddenly all of her senses, her doubts and her beliefs faded into the background as her own arms instinctively wrapped around his own frame. "It'll be okay, Liara." He comforted her by rubbing his arm in a circular motion over her back. Liara could feel the heated words escape from his lips as he spoke next to her cranial ear. "It will be okay."

The hologram that resided over the metallic foundation flickered when Liara bit her lip; finding the memory to be as real as she was now speaking to this device that sat on her desk. "It will be okay, he said." She spoke again, her voice quivering with the thought of him surrounded by his own pool of blood.

She shook her head immediately at the thought, attempting to erase all visual images of it before ascending into her chair. She didn't look at her unknown audience but rather kneeled over her legs with arms for support. "It is difficult to put aside an emotion for someone you care when you are out on the battlefield. I cannot explain how difficult it is. Each mission has me worried for him. Even when I'm there. Yet when I am there beside him, he gets annoyed by me!"

She chuckled, finding how Shepard would get a vexed look every time she would ask how he was doing shortly after a firefight. "There are times when I look at him and wonder if I should even be in a relationship with this man. He has died and I brought him back. Then later he nearly dies and I wasn't sure if I could bring him back."

Liara swiveled in her chair, stopping with her hands at the point where the device got a better focus on her face. She stared back to her audience. The bottom half of her lip became thin as her cheeks lifted and her jaw tensed. "The only way I fought back every tangible emotion that has at me is to know that he is a soldier. He has a good loyal crew. They all would go to the gates of hell for him. And here I was, being the worry wart that hovered over him."

She inhaled the cool air of her quarters while running a hand across her head. Her eyes darted away for only a brief moment before returning to the device. "What I didn't realize was how worried he was for me as well. I didn't think about fighting. I only fight. I never think about my own life, just his and his team. When he came into my quarters one day, I was busy typing away at my station. My mind wasn't on him at the moment because he always came to my quarters. Yet there I was, standing with a healing wound on my face."

After Mars, Liara received a flesh wound from exploding shrapnel. She didn't even realize the warm substance oozing out from the side of her face as she reloaded a new thermal clip into her weapon. Shepard was there, yelling for her to get back into cover. By the time the fight was over, Ashley was trying to touch her face with medi-gel and Liara kept saying she was okay and pushing Ashley's hands away.

It was only then that Shepard pointed out of the purple-red tinted blood splotch that now covered half of her face. He had a worried look of concern for her life but Liara didn't pay attention when the next firefight erupted.

It was only then when he was in her quarters did he tell her.

"Liara are you all right?" He asked, standing aside and fading in her per ferial view.

"Yes, Shepard." She asked, clearly not looking away from her work to see him.

"You did good work out there. Been a while since we took the Shadow Broker's ship. Your skills have highly improved." Shepard complimented with a lifted finger, showcasing what little she was offering now.

"Thank you, Shepard. It is appreciated." The pads of her fingers danced in rhythm to her thoughts. Her eyes above scanned for new information her agents were scouring for. Whatever the case Shepard was here for, she would give him time if needed.

However Shepard wasn't feeling the same way and worked his way around with Glyph watching with intrigue from his port. "Liara." He whispered, wondering if she would see him.

Her focused gaze never wavered from the dozen and so screens before her. "Yes, Shepard?" She called out nonchalantly.

"Liaaarra." Shepard whispered her name now, stretching it out in an almost annoying way. Suddenly he was standing in front of her beside the computer port she now worked on. His face tilted into her view, leaving Liara no other choice but to take her attention off her work to finally see what he wanted.

"What, Shepard?" Shepard raised his brows, not knowing what button his pushed this time.

"You seemed a little annoyed. Anything biting at your heels, Liara?" She quirked her head at the phrase 'biting a the heels'. Human phrases made no sense to her! Yet in that instances, Liara glanced down to her feet then back to Shepard, sharing a bewildered look about the statement that he phrased. "No?"

Shepard couldn't help but smirk at the mildly confused look she was giving him. "And to follow up, I am not annoyed Shepard."

The woman pulled away from her computer just enough to where she could get a better view of Shepard. "Not the way you sounded just a moment ago." He pointed out.

She shook her head, finding the misunderstanding greatly differs from annoyance and work. "Oh, no. Forgive me Shepard, I was catching up on the work that I have missed out since I've destroyed the Shadow Broker's base of operations."

Shepard went slack jawed at the news. "You blew up that giant dreadnaught out of the sky?"

"It wasn't exactly a dreadnaught, Shepard." She clarified with a twirl of a finger. "It was a vessel with many weapons but more it was a floating fortress if anything."

The Commander nodded to the mistake of clarification on the type of vessel. "Well, she was yours. Do you miss her?"

Liara shook her head, not understanding the attachment people had with their vessels. "Hardly." She simply stated. "If anything, I miss the seclusion."

Ever since they killed the Shadow Broker, Liara had full access to every bit of information. She was Athame and the isolation from the busy world of Illium was her Elysium. Not that she didn't mind when Shepard visited, far from it. Liara missed speaking with him. She missed the small talks that were nothing but about life and duty. Though what she missed most of all was touching and caressing the pads of her fingers over his body.

When he stopped visiting, Liara turned to her infinite resource to learn of Shepard and his exploits.

She was shocked to learn that he was arrested for 'war crimes' against the Batarians. She knew that the Commander didn't do anything heinous and that he was trying to stop them from doing something. Over the period of six months, she followed the trial. It was a mess and the evidence was truly against Shepard. Had the Reapers not shown up when they did, she feared he would be facing some serious charges. One of which meant being discharged from the Alliance.

Shepard lifted an eyebrow, finding 'seclusion' may involve not wanting him around. "You didn't miss me?" He asked inquisitively.

Liara again shook her head, raising a hand to defend herself. "Of course I missed you Shepard!"

"Oh yeah?" He cocked his head to the right as a smile teased Liara into a chuckle. "Don't be silly. Ever since you were arrested. I was watching the trials."

Yes, the trials. Shepard grudgingly groaned at the thought. Six months of trials and how does he get repaid? With a slap on the back of the head as soon as the Reapers invaded Earth. It was a waste of time and he knew they were coming. He even tried telling them the reason why he attacked the base. The Reapers. Even then they didn't believe in the Reapers.

"Not my greatest achievement." Shepard said, brushing it off with a shrug.

"Yes." Liara whispered with her eyes trained on the Commander's face. "I think your greatest achievement is soon to come, Shepard." The Asari woman closed the space between them with her hand wrapping around the back of his head. The short hair made her fingers tingle as she ran her hand up and around.

"Let's try not to get too ahead of ourselves, Liara." Shepard quipped with his own attachment for this woman sneaking around her waist. She shifted her hips when she felt his hands grip her hips. "Oh." A moan escaped from her when he curled a finger beneath the cloth that teased him. "But I would love to get ahead." Liara leaned, bringing her lips close to his but not enough for Shepard to appreciate the feeling of her velvet lips suckling at his own. Instead, she brushed her upper lip against his, enticing the Commander to firmly hold onto her hips.

"First." He halted all heavy petting in exchange for some answers that he originally came here for. The idea could backfire against him but he wanted to know something about Liara. "First?" Liara crooked the tattoo eyebrow at where he was going with this.

"How is the wound?" His eyes flickered to the wound at the side of her cheek and Liara glanced back at Shepard, not sure where this was going at all. "It's healing well. Why do you ask? Didn't Dr. Chakwas send you the report?"

"She did." He added, brushing his fingers against her cheek. Shepard never did like seeing her inflicted with pain. Even though she hardly seemed she was in pain. It was that she was trying to protect the team that made him worry for her. She was no soldier, yet there she was as Shepard could clearly see. Firing her weapon at the enemy and motioning to them that the pathway was clear.

To anyone, she was a simple Prothean archaeologist. But to Shepard, she was a soldier and that realization alone scared the crap out of him.

"Then," Liara breathed hotly against his neck, brushing her lips along the vein that pulsed before she nibble at the ear teasingly. "Let's continue." Her hand dragged helplessly along the length of his body before she reached the buckle of his pants.

Shepard could feel the muscles constrict as her fingers played their tune of foreplay, seeking forth that was hers to find. But Shepard wasn't yet done and he took her hand that was prepared to unbuckle his belt and cupped her palm with his.

He fought back and withered a breath of the Asari's name. "Liara."

She could sense she wasn't going to get her reward and looked at him straight in the eye. Her piercing blue gaze nearly made Shepard shut up and just go with what they were feeling but he couldn't. It took a lot of willpower to remain where the Commander was. Taking her hand, he guided her to the bed where he sat her down.

Scratching at his neck, Liara could see that he didn't know where to begin. Whatever he wanted to say, she knew it was important enough to hold off their more primal feelings - at least for now.

"I see what you want to tell me is… important." Liara pointed out verbally with Shepard acknowledging it with a nod.

It only took enough time for Shepard to gather his words that floated freely in the air, thrown by the moment of brief teasing that did he look down with a somewhat hesitant smile. "Liara," he began calmly. "Why didn't you listen when I told you to find cover?"

It never occurred to her to find cover. She was trying to give Ashley Williams and the Commander some covering fire. If they were to shoot at her, she could briefly deflect the projectiles with a biotic blast. Looking up to him, Liara squirmed under the question and nearly gave a human shrug to him in response. Instead, Liara whispered, "I do not know."

Scratching at the border of his hair, Shepard sat down next to her and cupped his hands together. "Even after that explosion, you continued to fight. Then when the Cerberus troopers were shooting at you, all I saw was anger and rage. I was yelling for you to find cover but you didn't flinch to my orders."

Technically, Liara was not under his command at the time but she could see what he was trying to tell her. She was always trying to protect him and his squad but never really gave a second thought about herself. In all the time since his 'resurrection', Liara was by herself, fending off against those who wish to do her harm. Shepard was never there for her. She knew how to fight more than probably Garrus - and that was stretching it a little in her opinion.

Sighing between her lips, Liara bended her head over and looked to the floor beneath her feet. "I can't stop myself from trying to protect you and Ashley. I am… like a guardian. I must protect and help you. That is all that runs through my mind." She expressed her honesty through the voice that sounded warm and sincere.

Shepard looked down behind the veil of her cheek, hoping to search for those familiar blue orbs. "You're not the only one." He said, running a hand over her back. "I understand what you are trying to do but getting killed is not on my list to see happening."

Liara quietly glanced back to him with a flinching smile. "Seeing you die again is certainly not on my list to see happen either, Shepard."

The Commander chuckled softly at the thought of their mutual understanding. "Then let's try to coordinate our tactics better." He advised, sneaking in a soft kiss on her cheek. "Very well," she added and returned a kiss of her own, this time on the mouth that eluded her. Shepard's breath on verbally announcing something else was quickly caught between their exchange of kisses and fell back as she pushed him to the bed.

"Then let us begin coordinating our tactics." Liara said with another kiss that vanquished any other fleeting thoughts that Shepard may have. No further resistance strung from Shepard whose mouth was full of tongue and flesh. Leaving only the desires to be tended with passion and lust.

The cool shadows that illuminated the auditorium flickered with the sigh that came from Liara, hunched and crowding her face with a hand. "I have never been the selfish person. Never." She told her audience who she will never know the pleasure of meeting when they find these capsules.

"Then Shepard had walked into my quarters and told me that he needed me alive. That he wanted to see me alive. Now…" Liara pulled the hand away and stared straight into the device. A twitch of realization tugged at her lips, knowing and understanding that she couldn't be selfish when it came to her own life. "Now I understand. I have become more selfish than selfless since he had rescued me on that world."

Since before she graduated from her schooling years ago. Before even the time of Shepard's journey. She was always taught by her mother that giving yourself for your fellow person was the most important thing another person could do.

That was what Liara had been doing since Shepard rescued her. She was there when he needed her help. She was there when he was dead. She was there for everything. The only thing she never learned that other people cared about her just as much as she cared for them.

The idea of her life being precious never crossed her mind. She would leap before Shepard, walk beside Shepard and point a gun at anything that wasn't a friendly.

Yet it was Shepard who told her that he was worried for her. Liara never admitted to being right when she was wrong or wrong when she was right. When her mistake was out in the open, she would acknowledge it and move on.

But at the point in time. Liara didn't take his words for granted. She knew that she needed to watch out for herself as well.

The hologram that stood quietly amongst the audience then raised herself from the chair she was sitting on. The audience members tracked her movement with their attentive eyes, their mouths closed and their minds open to the next session that was Rannoch.

Swallowing her parched throat, Liara turned about and leaned against the chair, hovering only slight above where the device was sitting on. "The next day, I was with Garrus and Tali. Checking our gear and our weapons twice."

The shuttle bay was buzzing with activity. Metallic clicks and cylinders evoked a sense of an approaching storm of violence. Every eye were trained on the weapons that was gripped by human or alien fingers. Liara stood by next to the arms cage as she ran through the drill of reloading thermal clips.

The armor she wore was vastly different from the occasional white and blue armor she had been wearing. It was more of a battle armor with shoulder, torso, breast and leg platting. It was heavier but at the cost of protection, she wasn't going to risk it. Geth fire power was lethal enough that it melted flesh, and no one wanted that.

Garrus meanwhile adjusted the scope on his sniper rifle as Tali helped him with the calibrations on the rifle.

Shepard appeared out from the elevator doors and walked through with his own weapons. The armor he wore had been fixed before hand though the colors were different. The molding foundation of the armor was black while a T-shaped red stripe began at each end of the shoulder and met at the neck before falling straight down in two vertical separate lines.

James appeared beside him as an escort to Shepard whom he briefed about the details of where they were landing.

"It's going to be the wild west down there Commander." Vega said, thrusting another tablet into Shepard's hands.

"Doesn't sound like an update I wanted to hear, Vega." James itched a smirk and took the tablet when Shepard was done reading it. "Intel is never updated. But I never enjoyed intel being right. Feels like cheating!" Laughing, Vega disappeared into the crowd that surrounded the weapons cage. Soon the other team arrived from the elevator.

A group of Quarian fighters, the best that the Migrant Fleet could offer. They looked just as deck as the Commander did. One of them carried a missile launcher and another a Arc weapon. A favorite amongst the Quarian who favored their Geth fried.

Amongst the team was also a Geth named Legion. The single optical point of light scanned all the organics in the shuttle bay and quietly without signaling to anyone that he was amongst trusted people. They were here to help the Quarian's and he was here to change the view of the Geth.

Admiral Shala'Raan was amongst the Quarian fighters as she led them over to the Commander.

"Captain Shepard, meet our own brand of special forces." The feminine voice filtered by the mask caught the attention of the Commander who spun around to find the Quarian soldiers. Each of their suits had markings that were colored similar to that of Geth interior colors. It was interesting to note from Shepard's eye that each of them were outfitted with sub-machine gun's, an assault rifle and several grenades. One had an arc torch which he was adjusting while Shepard inspected them.

"You gentlemen ready?" Shepard spoke with authority and they all heard with a snap of their posture that straightened.

They all voiced at once. "Yes, Captain!"

"They'll do, Admiral." A nod was shared between the two before Shepard called for everyone to come around. Vega tossed a metallic round disc in the center as he walked around the other side to meet with Shepard. The flat circular disc buzzed with a noise that caught the attention of everyone who surrounded the disc before showering them with a green hue. A hologram appeared in front of all the eyes that looked to it attentively.

What they all saw was a landscape, Rannoch landscape. Some of the Quarian's looked to each other, realizing that it was their homeworld. It wasn't close enough for them to grasp and hold the dirt in their hand but it was just enough for them to know what they were fighting for.

"We'll be landing here, designated as LZ Gamma." The voice shattered the trance of most of the people, realigning them with the focus of the objectives. Shepard reached out and pointed to two glowing orange objectives. One was on a peninsula land formation and another in a valley. "Mako squad, which I'll be leading will be going through the valley. We will take out the Geth air defense. Razor squad will be lead by Liara, she will take the team across the small stretch of land before coming upon this air defense tower."

Liara leading the team. That was as alien as those who were in fact aliens to Shepard. It was a choice that the Commander had picked Liara to be the team lead. She had proven herself on the battlefield more times than he could account for. Garrus would've led the team but Shepard felt he was going to be in the supporting role with how he was handling that sniper rifle right now.

"We will need to strike fast to disable the towers. Meanwhile another squad, entirely Quarian will be breaching a small fortified area, the communications hub. They will plant explosives and detonate it, leaving this area off for ourselves to attack."

Legion stepped in, his hand rose then stretched across to the hologram field. "The communication structure will be heavily fortified. It is advised that once we have disable the AA guns that we move in to help and support the Quarian team there."

Shepard could immediately see that the Quarian squad that the Admiral handed over to Shepard were suspicious of Legion. And rightly so. They were after all attacking Geth, seeing one here amongst them most have spread some ink of doubt. If it wasn't for Shepard, Legion may not be here giving them this precious commodity of intelligence.

"Don't worry," Shepard eased their fears about Legion. "He is with us. You can trust me on that."

Legion of course knew that he was hardly liked amongst the group. The closest Quarian friend he had was Tali and even then that was fragile as glass. Thankfully, Legion and EDI will be with Shepard. It was highly unlikely the Quarian's would give any room for AI's to be supporting them.

"Any questions?" Despite their issues, the Quarian commandos nodded in agreement over the battle plan.

"Good."

The static noise stirred heads to look around as Joker's voice peered through the comm system. "Six minutes, Commander."

"You heard him. Six minutes. Check gear, check weapons. We'll leave when the light is green." Pointing to the light above them, Shepard then turned and look to Liara who was more nervous than usual.

The metal plates beneath her boots rattle in song as her leg fidgeted in anxiety. Her hands compressed in front of her, fingers running over one another against the thoughts that swelled within. The pistol sat beside in silence with the safety on as Liara herself kneeled her head and whispered a prayer.

It took about five steps until Shepard could reach out to touch her shoulder, awakening Liara from her state of mind. "You're okay?"

She nodded, biting her bottom lip. "Yes."

"First time commanding a squad. Not exactly digging a Prothean site." Liara chuckled, finding his words lightened up the mood that they were all in. "Yeah," she said, agreeing with him on the context.

Crouching in front of her, Shepard took her hand into his own and turned over her palm. His gaze lowered onto the open palm and made circles with his free finger. "You'll do fine. Garrus and Tali will watch your back and so will the Quarians."

She scoffed at the idea. It sounded far easier for him when all she had to do was follow his orders. Here she was, being the leader of a team. This was not what she went to school far. Hell, this was far from any dig site that she ever been too. At least where she dug, no one was trying to kill you.

Sniffing nervously, she nodded again to Shepard. "Now I see why everyone follows you to the very end."

"Oh really?" He turned around, seeing Garrus shove a thermal clip into his sniper rifle. Tali was checking over her combat drone and the Quarian's were exercising combat drills.

"Okay, maybe. But they're all here for fun. I think Garrus likes doing this more than I do." She laughed again, chuckling at the idea that Garrus enjoyed fighting. Though it wasn't too hard to think of it since he does smile while firing his weapon off.

Shepard wouldn't have picked her if she wasn't ready. She battled the Shadow Broker and killed people who were out to kill her. She tangoed with Reapers and punched Cerberus agents in the face. This was much like that, except she was going to need to lead a squad in the heat of battle now.

Liara nodded and a sigh followed with a thought of trust for Shepard. "You'll do fine." He said, rubbing her hand gently and soothingly as a smile crescent the features on the Commander's face.

"Two minutes."

Joker's voice filled the atmosphere, alerting everyone to Steve's position who now opened the Kodiak cargo door. "Getting ready now, Commander." The pilot answered and walked into the Kodiak without a second glimpse to the man. Other's followed suit. The Quarians' were first then Garrus and Tali before Legion.

Shepard firmly picked up Liara by her hand and gave her a pat on the shoulder. "Let's go."

Garrus and the Quarians looked up to find EDI was already inside the Kodiak, scaring half to death of the Turian who jumped back and nearly smacked into one of the Quarian's. "EDI!" He cried out. The woman looked up and nodded. "Yes?"

"Wh-what the hell. Where were you?" EDI scanned the Turian's expression and realized he was frightened by her presences. Knowing she did not appear for the briefing, she added, "I have been here, waiting."

"Hell of a way of showing it." Garrus argued before stumbling into the Kodiak.

Liara looked to him briefly and nodded rhythmically as her focus now shifted to the objective. Taking the pistol off from the bench and holstered it, she began her march towards the Kodiak only to be stopped by a more masculine man who shoved an assault rifle into her hands.

"Hey Doc, don't forget this. You're going to need it." Looking down to the rifle, Liara took it and felt the weight was surprisingly light. Shepard smirked and guided her into the Kodiak before turning to face James Vega.

"Make sure Joke doesn't try to become a hero this time."

Vega saluted and grinned to the order. "Yes sir!"

Closing the doors, Shepard turned and face the group who were now seated comfortably. It was a tight squeeze but nothing that seemed to bother anyone. Steve made his way to the front of the cockpit and situated himself on the seat, turning the interior light on. The red saturated light blanketed their faces with an almost eerie glow.

"Thirty-seconds!" The voice crackled into the speakers inside the Kodiak as Steve made preparations of the vessel. The Normandy flashed across the horizon of Rannoch, stealth drives were active but not for long once the shuttle hatch was open, meaning they would need to make a quick escape and evade the AA towers.

The one thing Liara didn't like about drops was the silence. She was feeling herself becoming the squirmy worm she was. Her leg bounced up and down like an animal, hoping to find some solution to cure its ailment. She scratched her noise, finding it surprisingly itchy suddenly. Garrus could see how nervous she was and gave her a gentle nudge of the elbow.

"Hey. You okay Liara?"

Another question of how she was feeling, Liara seriously needed to review how she looked before leading a mission. Glancing at the Turian sharpshooter, she nodded with a faded smile. "Yup." Her voice was dry and anxious, nothing that Garrus as heard before. "You'll do fine kid."

EDI meanwhile turned to face Liara and nodded in agreement with the Turian. "By my estimations, we will be able to complete our objectives with our teams split into two. Shepard has picked a worthy leader in you Doctor T'Soni."

The nearly monotonic voice didn't help with the situation for Liara who only smiled again for the robotic woman.

The Normandy swooped in, Joker began dropping procedures as he clicked on the switch for the shuttle bay doors. "Good luck out there Commander and come back in one piece, will ya?"

Steve grinned to the comment Joker gave and pulled the Kodiak out from the shuttle bay. Boosters below the hull of the Kodiak flamed to life, providing lift just enough to escape the belly of the Normandy and into the air freely. "Here we go."

Turbulence immediately struck them wildly. Though this wasn't so much the atmosphere as it was the AA guns firing at them. "Shit!"

Shepard looked through the cockpit to find the towers were firing straight at them. Steve knew the Commander was going to say something about those AA guns and well already on maneuvering their way out of targeting range. "Don't worry Commander, I got this."

"Thank God we have you on our side, Steve." Patting him on the shoulder, everyone else didn't feel the same way. Liara shot her arm up to the handle above and kept her grip tight on the handle, hoping this ship didn't flip over.

"Mako team, get ready!" Shepard shouted in the back, a brief salute was given by Garrus while Tali squeaked at the sudden drop of the Kodiak. Walking over to the door, Shepard reached on the handle and pulled it back, revealing the sunlight that soaked the interior of the Kodiak.

It was Rannoch sunlight, mixed by the black powder of charged ion burst from the AA guns. The sound of air rushing into the cargo deafened Liara's own thoughts, knowing she didn't have anymore when she saw Shepard make his way to the exit.

The Kodiak descended further into the valley. EDI and Legion rose up from their seats and walked towards the exit of the Kodiak. The sound from the burst fire echoed in the chamber, forcing Liara to bite down on her lips as she knew their time was closing in on them fast. "Go!" Shepard shouted, patting on EDI then Legion.

The Commander snapped a look to Liara and smiled warmly to the woman before he took out his rifle and jumped with the rest of his team. The Asari woman caught a glimpse of the battle, Geth were already pouring in on their position just as the door was closed by Garrus.

"Thanks Commander, we'll be seeing you soon. Good luck!" Steve pulled the Kodiak away from the valley and directed the ship towards the peninsula that wasn't as far off as the hologram displayed. Liara channeled her breathing, slowly inhaling and exhaling. The Quarians that sat beside her also readied their weapons and looked over to find the Asari woman trying to relax.

One of them decided to ask a question, wondering who this woman was exactly. "Is this your first time?" He asks, curious beneath the mask that hid his face.

Liara brought her attention back up to the Quarian male who asked and shook her head to his question. "No." Her voice was stern and annoyed by the question. How many people were going to ask this question? Liara flinched and drew her eyes elsewhere.

For someone who looked nervous, they didn't further poke with their investigative questions and remained silent during the duration of the flight.

For Garrus who eavesdropped decided to plant his few cents on the matter. "She's great. I've seen hear shove a boot up a mercenaries ass and didn't ask for change!" Liara shot a look to the Turian, her expression writhing in the same manner as 'yeah thanks for that', leaving Garrus to shrug helplessly at his antics.

Another round of turbulence struck and everyone behind Steve shot their harms for handles, bracing themselves for the next drop.

"Oh you sonofabitch." Steve could see on the horizon of the peninsula that they had a Geth Armature waiting for them. He couldn't drop them as close as he would like, flanking the Kodiak to the left, he needed to find another landing zone. The armature took notice of the fleeing vessel and armed it's pain pulse cannon. Firing into the air, it missed the Kodiak by centimeters though it still had an effect of those inside.

The violent shake nearly sent the team thrown around inside the Kodiak, "Sorry about that." The pilot apologized as he swiveled the Kodiak on a small plateau. There was some distance from the tower but it was the best he could do.

Turning over on his seat, Steve gave a thumbs up. "Ready to go."

Garrus stood and walked over by the exit. He tugged at the handle, exposing them all to the wind that forced its way through the crack of the door. Soon the light from the sun exposed them all as Liara took lead. Landing on the soft dirt, she provided cover with her rifle as the others left the Kodiak.

The Asari woman looked to the Kodiak as Steve's voice could be heard in her ear. "Good luck out there Liara!"

Garrus, Tali and the Quarian commandos all had their weapons drawn out. "This doesn't look like the LZ." Voiced one of the Quarian commandos who suspicion roused concern amongst the group.

"Nope but I don't see a point now in bitching about it." Garrus added, cycling the bolt in the rifle as a grin painted across his face.

Liara could see the tower from where they were and knew they didn't have time to waste. "Move out!" She whispered, knife handing towards the small valley that supported cover. "And maintain sound discipline." Garrus, Tali and the rest of the Quarian commandos followed her. Each drew their weapon in the direction that was not provided with cover.

As they made their way into the valley, they could see the Migrant Fleet above giving hell to the Geth Fleet. There wasn't any time to waste and she hoped they could complete their job soon. Yet in the back of her mind, a trickle of concern dropped into her consciousness, alerting her of one particular person that flashed in her mind.

It wasn't long that her mind folded when the familiar grunts of Geth forced them to halt on their path. Liara looked through the scope of her rifle to see up ahead.

She raised her hand and pointed two fingers in the air. Garrus understood and crouched beside Liara. He used her shoulder for stabilization of his rifle as he aimed through the scope. Breathing slowly, Garrus calculated his shots on the patrol team as his finger readied on the trigger, applying pressure when needed.

"Now." The Asari whispered and the weapon sounded off twice with a responsive thud for each Geth trooper. One of their heads exploded while the other stumbled to the ground. "Amateurs." Garrus retorted helplessly, picking the rifle back into his own arms as he watched the Quarians scuttle ahead.

Scouting ahead, one of the Quarian's turned to signal to the rest of the team to move up. Liara patted on Garrus's back for him to move. Tali followed leaving Liara to cover their rear.

Crossing a small path, the team Liara led to came across a group of sentries. They were working on a generator that was protected by an overarch cave formation. No one could see the power generator that shielded the towers from bombardment. Taking it out would be a great idea if it wasn't for the fact that the Quarian's would immediately open fire on them.

Admiral Shala'Raan reminded them that her orders are outweighed by the other Admirals if they so choose to fire on them. As thought it wasn't enough that they have to fight the Geth, now Liara had to worry about was the Quarian fleet above them trying to pick shots at them if they get a chance.

The commandos slid into cover behind several of the crates the Geth left behind. One of the Quarian leaned out and immediately Liara caught the glare running off his mask's visor. Whistling lowly, she was lucky enough to catch the males attention for him to pull back into cover.

"What's the plan?" Garrus asked, his tone low enough that only she and Tali could hear.

Peaking behind the crate, she could see several Geth troopers taking patrols around the sentries. The Geth armature that nearly shot them down was in front of the defense tower. Picking them off one by one was risky. They needed a diversion, something they couldn't do at the moment. If they used comms, the Geth would pick up on their signal immediately.

Peeling back into cover, she shook her head to the Turian sharpshooter. "Damn." He huffed, nudging Tali over. "Lady luck isn't on our side today, Tali."

She quirked a grin beneath her mask before checking her omni-tool to get a clear representation of the peninsula. The hologram that they saw aboard the Normandy had not been updated, however the Quarian engineer was searching for an alternate route.

The Quarian female shook her head when she notice a small area that cuts right through this valley. "It's small." She began to say. "If we can get one up there and shoot at them, they'll be distract enough to pull most of their forces away."

Liara interjected with the strategy. "Then we can move in and see if we can disable the armature."

Garrus enjoyed the idea of a straight fight. That was the only kind of fight he preferred. None of this running around crap. "I like a challenge." He snickered under his breath, cycling a new thermal clip into the rifle.

Nodding to Garrus's statement, Liara checked her ammo counter and signaled for the commandos to come where they were. They moved surreptitiously under the shadows that did not illuminate around them. Guided by Liara's hand signal, they stopped once they were behind the cover the other team took.

"Here is the plan." Liara began speaking as her eyes slowly met Garrus, then Tali and finally the Quarian commandos that were with them on this mission. Today she was the squad leader.


	10. Storming Rannoch Part I

_Mass Effect _and characters do not belong to me.

Author's Notes: Some violence in here! This chapter was difficult in writing Liara's combat experience. Particularly the fact that in the first game, it was hinted or at least known she was a civilian with no combat experience. The fact that she knew how to fight was bizarre with no background history referencing her skills in combat; then again it was a game! So I wish to explore a bit of here in this chapter.

* * *

**Chapter 10 —** _Storming Rannoch Part I _

The audience became mesmerized by the recounting of the Battle of Rannoch. The difference from the Quarians perspective and that of Liaras' were two different views. Foremost, the Quarian history of the battle was told primarily of the space battle above; their efforts were proved most formidable against the Geth fleet that were struggling to gain an advantage of their creators. There was a good detail of the ground battle as well but not much was covered as the Quarian forces there were helped by Commander Shepard's own team.

Finding that there were also multiple ground teams that came into contact with Geth troops, most of whom were trying to take out AA towers or power that webbed across a continent of Rannoch. What made Liara's account all that more interesting was how she led a team to complete the mission. As far as anyone knew, Liara never took command or even shouted orders to anyone. She was the more reserved fighter of Shepard's squad. If anything, Liara proved that she was every bit capable of handling herself than even the Asari commandos.

Least not one forget though, the battle was far from over and the hologram that hovered over the grey foundation meddled with that idea the audience had of the Asari woman.

"The missions I have been prior to this one were… easy." She confessed, rubbing her chin in thought if she was in disillusion about the prior undertaking of missions.

"Shepard knew what was best to do to with any situation. I didn't. I was fresh, green as they would call me. I do not think even the Alliance would have used me to take down a single AA battery on that peninsula. After all, my skills lied where the dirt was." The latter part of her words received a snickering applause from the audience.

Despite what had happened on Rannoch, Liara kept to her normal self as much as possible through the story of her own battle on Rannoch.

She was reminded by Shepard of how costly a fight was. The Asari wars of past time were by no stretch of the imagination brutal as what she was facing every day with Shepard. In every account of historical knowledge, the Asari were fierce warriors when it came to a fight, even if some chose a life that resembled closely and confined more absolutely to the peace that no other species harbored.

Before the Reapers invaded, the Asari handled a conflict far differently than the Turians' or even the Krogans. They had a vast fleet and their military were strong enough that even the Turian's thought twice before picking a fight with an Asari. Yet by that notion, the Asari were reserved in finding fights to end. They used specialized forces to handled the more brutish of conflicts.

Even now, Liara proved her worth on the field enough times for Shepard to call her to be the squad leader.

The hologram swiveled in view of the audience as Liara sat back down on her chair. Her expression whittled away at the scars of what she saw that day. It was only the beginning for her and the squad she led.

"Communication with Shepard was minimal. I couldn't even talk to him to see how he was handling the situation on the other side unless it was vital for our own and their safety. The Geth had a tactic of picking up all communication signals. Speaking even to my own team using our built in communication devices in our armor was not used. We were forced down to the basics. Hand signals, facial gestures, even throwing a pebble or two at each other."

By any measure, the operation on Rannoch had to be the most difficult fight she underwent prior to storming Earth. The Geth saw no mercy, they felt no pain. They were endless in their count and they fired with little empathy towards those who were trying to kill.

Eventually she saw how far Geth mercy went when they attacked Shepard.

Shaking mentally at the thoughts, she returned to her account on Rannoch. Her audience, the ones she could not see beyond the metallic device that sat comfortably on the stand, waited with interest and curiosity.

Gazing deeply into the device, Liara began recalling the events by memory.

"Garrus, go up this hill through this cut of the hill. There should be a pathway that will allow you to gain a better advantage over these Geth." Liara the squad leader suggested, her eyes flickered to Garrus who shifted the weapon between his legs. "And then?" He asked, nearly grinning at the thought of what his rifle and skills were going to be used for.

"Kill."

Garrus couldn't hide the growing grin that flared his mandibles, Liara had definitely changed from being the reserved Doctor that she was to a now formidable force.

Back on the subject of 'killing', the order served no problem for Garrus who chuckled lightly to that order while he stroked gently of his rifle as though it was a beast that will soon unleash hell upon the unsuspecting Geth.

There was one problem to this plan and Garrus wholeheartedly wanted to point this out. "What of the Geth Armature?" He asked, curious to hear what Liara had in mind about the behemoth.

She smiled to him and gave a unknowing shrug. "We'll improvise."

Chuckling to that thought, he nodded to her. "Understood."

The Quarian commandos meanwhile felt they were left out of the loop, one of whom who carried a missile launcher threw his hand into the middle, seeking the attention of the squad leader. "And what of us?"

His voice was deep, patterned by a dialect that was harsh to hear. "You three will provide base of supporting fire here." She lifted a finger and directed their attention in the middle of the hologram that Tali's omni-tool provided.

The area she asked for them to be was quite obvious and clear that they will be put directly in the range of danger. Concern for their safety, the lead male offered his input on the tactics. "We can distract them by using our missile launcher to cripple the movement of the Armature. This will prompt the Geth to reveille back, allowing us a better entrance into the AA tower."

Immediately, Liara shook her hand. "No. We will deal with the Armature soon enough. We need a base of supporting fire here. If we don't, we'll lose ground, giving the Geth an ample opportunity to overwhelm us."

The Quarian male wasn't buying it and he was about to incite another debate until Tali hushed him with a hiss. "Liara is the team lead! Listen to her!"

The male snapped a look to Tali as though he didn't take orders from an alien, but was stifled when Garrus made the opportunity to mend differences. "We don't have time for arguments." He noted quietly. "Let's just get this done and go home."

"I like the sound of that." Another Quarian male added, grinning beneath the mask that shielded most of his expression. "Fine." The debating Quarian surrendered his life onto Liara. A decision that was hesitant if not forcing him to rise suspicion for this Asari's capability to lead them into battle.

If she failed, then he was going to pull his men out and let them die in this hole they were digging for themselves. Biting hard at the bottom lip, the male gave a nod to his smell to set up a base of fire where they were right now.

She waved a disconcerting eye over the Quarian who raised his doubts about her. She didn't hide it with a face full of smiles or stoic looks that showed she could do this. On the contrary, Liara herself nibbles the doubts with concern for her team. During the flight down to Rannoch, Liara was helpless to avoid the troubling thoughts that barraged the Doctor. She cursed at Shepard for choosing her but she knew simultaneously that she was capable.

Shepard himself expressed that he was never up to the challenge of being a Spectre when Ambassador Udina chose him. Hell, he told him no to the first request and then to the second request. The only reason why Shepard bothered was to hunt down Saren.

Shepard never enjoyed the thought of being in the limelight, whether it be becoming the first Human Spectre or pulled away from his comrades to do a side job for Udina. Shepard was a soldier through and through and he did his job without question.

She had to do the same. At least in the respective ordeal of finishing her mission here on Rannoch.

Liara gave the signal with a gentle pat on the shoulder to Garrus, who in turn slung the weapon on the hunched back of the armor that would allow him to sneak unseen by the Geth while traversing through the tunnel. Tali took up position next to the Asari woman, her weapon removed from the magnetic latch on her hip. She checked the thermal clip of her magazine before smacking it back into the slot.

Liara could see that Tali was not use to following the Asari woman into battle and reluctantly wanted to tell her things will be okay. She refused to give into making promises.

"Ready?" Liara whispered across to the Quarian woman who turned her mask to get a better view of the blue form that was Liara's face.

"Yes." Tali was by no stretch a rookie, but every encounter was met with a pattern of anxiety and fear.

Leaning her head against the crate, Liara now waited for Garrus to open fire on the Geth. The silence that followed was unnerving for her. Every fiber in her leg became less and less still, fidgeting above the earth that vibrated with the movements of the Armature.

The breast plate of her armor rose and fell in concordance to her breathing. Slowly in taking the air but rapidly expelling it. She was off key and Liara knew that not being focused could get them killed. Her heart refused to slow and each thump could be heard in her cranial eardrum. Pounding like a war drum for a descending storm that was about to come. She scratched the brow of her forehead, hoping to ease her the line that folded across her head.

Everyone had their own way of relaxing before battle. Tali who sat next to her whispered a prayer that Liara's translator could not pick up properly. Garrus who was by now reaching his perch would bow his head and remain still as a stone.

The Commander that Liara could not help but think about would always throw a comforting smile to her. She in return curl a warm smile, finding that he would always watch over her. That was enough to give her comfort now that she could imagine his face here and now.

Taking an ounce of air at a time, she slowly meditated with her lids closing over her anxious eyes.

"You're never prepared for battle, despite the enormous experience you may have gained from doing battle." She confessed through the lenses of her audience.

Liara was no soldier by any right. She never joined any Asari branch of military and her mind never once slipped an idea for her to train prior to meeting Shepard. Even a fleeting thought that she would be using a weapon was laughable at the time of her years at the university.

She knew the universe beyond Thessia was practically inhospitable. Pirates, raiders, mercenaries and slavers. They all would have loved to get a piece of her. She - Liara - was as pacifist as they come; a surprise considering her lineage was part Krogan.

She used more wit than brawn. When she was digging on colonies owned and operated by a group that didn't like the Asari, she would pay her way to dig. Never once did she even kill or look at a person with an affliction in her eye. That was until she met Shepard.

When the Geth attacked her on Therum. Things changed. She knew she became a target of some conspiracy. Of what? She didn't know. Until Shepard told her that her mother was involved with Saren, a rogue Spectre. Feeling guilty that she was a 'third wheel' on the Normandy, she requested to be trained in the numerous firearms by the Commander.

"My first experience on the battlefield was during a routine stop on a planet just outside Citadel Space. The Commander picked me and Ashley Williams to go down planet side. I didn't expect the wild firefight that would ensue on this rather peaceful looking world." She smirked at the naivety of herself three years ago.

She was young, inexperienced in the world outside Prothean archaeology. She would have better luck stripping on some off beat colony than where she was at beside Commander Shepard.

"The sound of assault rifles screaming and the smell of ionized air, cordite reaching into the back of your mouth until you wanted to vomit. People yelling, frightened at the prospect of death. For the first ten minutes, I could not move from where I was. I watched in awe and horror for Shepard's safety as he fought off wave after wave of mercenaries who disabled our vehicle."

Liara could remember the first time she pulled the trigger on her pistol. It was no longer the pistol she used to practice aboard the Normandy in the safe confinement of a ship. Here, she was firing it at a man who was charging at her with a bayonet.

"I pressed my finger hard on the trigger and the next thing I realized, the man charging at me was on the ground, gurgling as the slug pierced his trachea." The Doctor paused for several seconds, reminiscing on the terrible consequences that was of her own doing. The man who she had never seen ,heard or knew of was now dead by her hands.

Shaking her head off of those thoughts, she bit down on her lip and knowingly gave a mental shrug with a visual of the lowering of her eyes. "When we were picked up on the Normandy. Shepard knew I wasn't feeling well or in the least knew I was possibly traumatized by what had happened."

Thinking back on what had happened, Liara knew she was not fit for combat. She lacked the skills to take on more versatile enemies that would not have given a second chance to kill her. Shepard was there to mend with her on what she had experienced, but words alone could not comfort the Asari doctor.

"Shepard." She pondered on the name, lips twitching at the face she could see now. "Shepard knew the extent that the mind could handle on death. He had seen more of it than most Asari would in their entire lifespan."

Liara raised her chin, her head tilting back and into the headrest of her chair. The eyes of the Asari doctor seemed to wander about towards the ceiling, briefly disappearing from view of the audience who themselves looked in wonder. "I could feel his eyes roaming around my face, concern growing with each passing second as he sat in front of me, quietly studying the many facets of this Liara."

A smirk fled to the corner of her mouth, filling an empty void with a dimple that masked the pain she could still feel through the weapon she tugged at. "He didn't say a thing for at least a minute. I finally got the courage to ask what was wrong and he finally responded by saying if I wanted to try the latest meal that wasn't rations."

Liara was stunned, her eyes quirking slightly at the request Shepard had just offered to her. His comment eased a fused that was boiling to the rim of her mind. She could not formulate a proper answer and instead chuckled with some mild confusion written into her eyes.

"He said it was the finest steak from Earth." She quipped, grinning lightly to the memory that she held onto all these years. If anything about Shepard, it was how he had the time to get to know even those who didn't serve much of a purpose, outside the current mission that was. Even for Liara who she found herself not the perfect candidate to stay aboard the luxurious Normandy, especially after Benezia.

"Shepard then invited me to dinner that night. Asking that I would fall in love with this 'steak'. Human dietary foods never interested me, even if I had eaten some of their more fascinating foods. But it wasn't about the food." Liara continued to speak, as she did, her head slowly fell down back, leveling out with the recording device that sat quietly on her desk.

"He wanted to give me company. Wanted to share some stories. Not war stories mind you. Just… simple stories about his life." What she didn't realize at the time was that Shepard was easing her nerves that had been severed by the skirmish earlier. "I realized then that he wasn't the gung ho soldier that I perceived. He was warm at heart and gentler when he spoke. And when he told me about his life, about family and Earth. All my worries, my guilt and my fears faded with his voice. What he did was reunite a part of me back."

Blinking at the inky memory, she exhaled the last ounce of air from her lungs and slumped the shoulders that weighed her down. Through all that she went through with Shepard, she had only realized how important he was to her.

"In a way," Liara's voice cascaded, intrigued by the rising memory she was bringing up on Shepard. "Shepard kept me from falling into that hell."

But that was not the only thing that made her of who she was today. "There were more reason why I fought and continue to do so today; but the one that made me open my eyes to the realities of the galaxy was because of my mother. Not because she was bad. Because there were people out to manipulate the innocent and cause havoc during times of peace."

Her mother - Benezia - was the driving force of Liara becoming the warrior she was. All the thoughts of pain, the feeling of guilt faded when she saw her mother's face, skewed by a wrong and immoral path. She didn't want to live on knowing she allowed her mother to cause havoc across the galaxy. Let alone bring upon the Reapers.

"All those emotions I had," She drew her hands together, flat and crescent to the audience. "Gone." The hands that stood before her were swept away from view.

"I could not believe my mother was helping a mad man! And I could not allow her to complete her mission. If anything, I was the one who needed to personally bring her down, even if that meant killing her." Kill. Yes, take life, an atrocious act brought on by another atrocious act.

She could not feel better of herself to know what she needed to. Yet if she didn't do anything, then it was to her as though she had killed millions already.

"I could no longer be the person to have her head in a hole, not aware of her surroundings." She said, pounding her finger on the desk defiantly. "I grew stronger, both mentally and physically with my skills. My biotics which were nothing more than a natural gift of being an Asari had become a weapon. Now here I was on…"

A weapon. Yes, that was what she had become. After Shepard's death, she had become more lethal than even some Asari commandos. Now that she was here on Rannoch, pitted against a relentless enemy and a foe with unimaginable stopping power. Liara's abilities were about to be tested.

The audience below who watched the stature of Liara's hologram were deafen in silence but their minds raced. Each movement of their eyes traced with attentive hints of how closely they were following her. Even though many of them had visited her countless of times, the great war against the Reapers have captivated trillions across the Galaxy to continue learning and respecting these people like Liara. They fought a war unimaginable in scale. Brutal and exhausting in every way. How could one not at least attest to these figures?

Liara T'Soni was only a civilian before the Reapers arrived. The audience below were all civilians. None of them held a military background. All had their own set of skills that determined their career choices. Liara proved that at times when the enemy is on your front door step, one must always be prepared. It was the kind of heroic nobility they saw not only in Liara, but in Shepard as well.

Drowning her lips with a hand, she sat back in the chair and fixed her posture on the seat. Her elbows propped up against the table, allowing the Asari woman balance as she laid her chin against the open palms of support. Her gaze laid silent, flat with the audience while the fatty tissue surrounding her mouth ran against one another. "…Rannoch. The Geth… leading a squad. What was I doing?"

Swallowing her parched throat, Liara came back to her world. Her fingers tapped eagerly against the frame of her rifle, the anticipation of Garrus' report was quickly becoming a game of impatience.

The wait for Garrus and his distraction of the plan was falling behind with the sun settling over the horizon. They wouldn't have long for sunlight, even if they could swap their natural eyes for a more artificial night vision; they would still need to complete this mission before the Migrant Fleet would be forced to pull out from Rannoch space.

As the Turian wormed his way through the small tunnel, he could see the light ahead was dimming, giving way for more concealment. He wasn't exactly outfitted for sneaking missions, but the short trimmed grass waving in the wind will offer just enough for him to pop a few shots off.

The three Quarian commandos meanwhile were setting up their weapons. One of whom had their assault rifle trained on a group of Geth who were working on the generator. The Geth who worked on the generator did not suspect or even expect what was coming. Their ocular white light inside the plates of the head didn't move towards their direction or even hinted of their discovery.

The Geth Armature that was going to be a pain in their rear was looking about, turning its head to the left and then to the right with suspicion slowly arousing. These Geth had only a fraction of the AI that the Quarian's encountered a hundred or so years ago. Yet despite their lack of advance intelligence, they were just as deadly.

Tali looked behind the metallic crate that shielded them from view. She couldn't get a perfect view that allowed her to see the other side of the arched walls. Pulling back, she looked to the Doctor.

The hologram that garnered the attention of the audience below looked at the Liara who know supported her weight of her face by the palm of her hand. "The funny thing about Rannoch was the mountains that the Geth used to set up their anti-air batteries. It was nearly impossible to send in a quick fighter that could evade the tracking systems of those batteries without ramming into a mountain."

She had to admire the tactics the Geth employed against the Quarian's. They were dug in and the Quarian fleet needed a scalpel to precisely remove them. Even if they could bombard the batteries from above, they would run out of ammo before they could even damage one. Let alone take it out of service.

"It was one more reason why Shepard and I went in on foot. The task wasn't easy but it was the only option of remove the batteries without exploiting one third of the Migrant Fleet to just take out a couple of AA guns." Liara mused over the idea that the Normandy could have done the job alone.

That was if the stealth drives could hold as the Normandy fired her weapons. It was a draw back that made Hologram Liara to sigh over. Her fingers biting at the scalp of her head and her eyes drifting up back to the audience.

Setting the spot on the perch, Garrus looked through the scope to find that the Geth meant business. Foot soldiers of all variants roamed around. There were troops who held flame throwing weapons, troops that carried portable drones. Even drones that would aid the Armature if not taken out. Though that was not the most daunting task that Garrus gritted his teeth at.

"Damnit." He huffed below a shy decibel.

A titular looking Geth, stalking for an unknowing prey in a set coordinated pattern. Their rustic color was not a sign of actual decay but rather a warning for all organic life who may encounter this beast of a Geth. The Armature alone was a hassle, but Primes were of a different breed. They had a pulse cannon capable of shredding flesh with its victim even knowing. They coordinate even more advance forms of tactics that were not deployed by lower ranking Geth, making them a crucial target to take out if you wanted to survive.

There was also the matter of the drones that they would deploy. They were equally if not annoying bastards that Garrus nicknamed 'assholes'.

Debating whether or not to tell Liara about it would expose their position, Garrus figured he'll distract them well enough that he could retreat to Liara and then give her the info then. It was a decision he hated as the finger of his slid underneath the trigger guard and flexed with lust at the trigger itself; aching to attack now rather than later.

Cursing mentally, he was going have to go through with it whether he liked it or not.

The dots of the scope offered a tactical advantage for the Turian who was searching for a weakness in the platoon of Geth. The dot hovered generously over several potential targets, all of whom were just foot soldiers. The Geth Prime would be a nice easy target but the shields would prevent his round from knocking off the spinal antenna.

There was one kind of projectile round that could bypass the shields and shred through armor. A Turian crafted round used mostly for special operations and a round he could never get his hand on due to the illegality in Citadel Space.

Groaning at the impossible situation he was faced with, he reminded himself through a grunt that he was only here to distract, not assassinate.

The Geth Prime would be suitable for this case. If he could slap the shields down to zero, it will be enough to give him a second shot right at the light casing of its head.

Easing the weapon, he hovered the dot over the Geth Prime with caution. He hoped this one shot will be enough to grab the attention of all of the Geth here. Slipping the finger in an out of the trigger guard teasingly, he then adjusted his other hand below the hand grip. The bipod that is built into the frame of the rifle allowed for Garrus to make minor adjustments.

The wind carefully picked up but didn't go over such that the blades of grass next to him hardly whimpered.

The intake of air slowed progressively, as such his lungs began to relax and his muscles tightened around the hand grip and the trigger. As the sight dot traveled along with the Geth Prime, he waited until the Prime was well enough not facing at Garrus that he planted the shot ahead mentally.

The internal clock counted down and the seconds fell like the wind that quietly died down to a still halt. The sun was settling behind the mountains, casting a darkly shadow over the Geth below. They were all busy, moving crates, repairing sections of the AA battery and or on patrol. They didn't realize what was going to hit them until he saw something happening amongst a group of grey painted foot soldiers.

They began running away from the AA battery and towards Liara's location.

"The hell?" Garrus watched briefly before training his focus back on the Prime. The Prime was no longer there. "Shit." He hissed, frantically searching for the Prime that now eluded him.

Peaking beneath the crate, Liara didn't hear a resounding report. She thought Garrus was taking his sweet time but not like this. By now they would already be charging, biotics and all.

Tali looked even more puzzled as she kept sneaking looks behind cover. The Quarian commandos themselves were getting itchy, not liking the sudden silence that now filled the atmosphere.

Not feeling completely comfortable under the command of Liara, the male lead of the commando unit moved around behind cover to get a peak of the situation, only he was met with his worse fears of spotting a squad of Geth troopers, followed by the mechanical beast - the Prime.

"Keelah." The word slipped, no alarm, no warning.

Liara hitched her head just enough to see the whizzing blue pulses of projectiles striking at the earth around the Quarian commandos. "Tali!" Her attempt to alert Tali faltered, muffled and distorted by the pitching cries of Geth weapons. It was no surprise to know that the woman was well aware of what was going on.

By the time Liara had tried to tell Tali, she was pointing her own weapon down range and firing off her sub machine gun. Liara followed suit and propped her rifle just above cover of the crate and fired.

It wasn't enough to stop the force that now approached them, whatever attracted their attention, they will debate later. For now, Liara tried to hold them off while the commando's themselves were looking for a way out. The tight squeeze between the hellish streaks of blue and the next array of crates seemed too far to even move.

One of them scrambled out a missile launcher but it wasn't enough as the Prime charged the pulse cannon it carried and fired happily at their cover. The metal crate screamed with a hissing whine as the crate itself melted away, exposing the Quarian's to the live fire.

Garrus had already heard the shots and decided to retaliate, firing openly at the running Geth who were going over to where the rest of the team was.

Each pull of the trigger caused the rifle to kick into his shoulder, the weapon jumped and the loud report echoed clearly into the twilight. It was only a split nano-second did that same slug pierced right through the torso of a Geth carrying a flame throwing weapon, causing it to erupt in flames. The others not surprisingly were not focused on their wounded, merely passing it nonchalantly.

"Cover fire!" Liara shouted to Tali with the woman acknowledging it with her array of fiercely charged bullets. Kicking up the dirt around the Prime, it paid no attention to the other group; as though they were not on his to kill list while the Commando's scrambled towards Liara.

Crack! Another Geth had lost its head and sent tumbling into the waters below. Garrus reloaded and fired again. He repeated this pattern with two more rounds until the rifle he carried vented the excess heat.

Cycling back the cylinder of the weapon, he inserted a heavy clip of thermal clips before pushing the cylinder back into place. A approving sound of a click was all that Garrus needed to keep doing his job.

Pressing his finger again on the trigger, he sent the round barreling for a Geth who was wielding a missile launcher. That apparently was enough for them to take notice of who was attacking them as Garrus spotted a similar sniper shooting at the Turian high upon his perch. Earth spewing the dirt and grass, the Turian winced as the ground spat at him like venom.

Taking the weapon and shouldering over and onto his hunched back, Garrus made the slow crawl back to where Liara was.

One of the Commando's was still behind the melted carcass of the crate, finding that he just had enough time to charge his grenade and throw it right into the group of Geth. A spat of electricity followed the small explosion, causing the Geth around it to dance demonically before falling like puppets.

"For Rannoch!" He yelled with a smile to curl against his cheeks. Turning about face, the Quarian was about to make his run towards cover where the rest of the team was before the Prime reacted indifferently.

With one single shot, the pulse from its weapon fired with a high pitch whine, slicing through the air at dizzying speeds before striking clear back at the Quarian in his reveille from him.

Tali, Liara and the commando's who were all giving him cover saw the explosion of matter and body parts flinging in all direction. Blood splattered across Liara who flinched at the sight and fumbled down to the ground. Her face drew shock along with the deafening silence that seem to subdue Liara from doing anything but looking at the sky.

Managing his way out from the spider hole, Garrus sprung up and jogged at an even pace, weapon in hand. His beady eyes looked around and saw the illuminated lights of battle scattering across the body of the arched walls. There wasn't any time to lose.

Tali hunched over the grounded Asari and looked over to make sure she didn't receive any shrapnel to her body. The other Quarian's continued their fire, hoping to keep the Prime to overwhelming them.

"Liara!" Tali ran her fingers over the woman's body, her armor had not been pierced but her face was covered in Quarian blood. "Ke-Keelah."

The hologram that stood before the audience flickered in the reflection of the mood that Liara now showed. Her tattooed brows curved inwardly over her nose, her eyes glinted with a hint of frustration at how she reacted so catatonically.

"I've seen death." She began flatly with her fingers trailing over her scalp.

"But it wasn't death that phased me. It was in that second that I had just lost a teammate." She hissed through clenched teeth. Finding that she froze like an icicle didn't help the team who were doing the brunt of the work.

Seeing the wide eyed Asari woman lying on the ground, covered in Quarian blood, prompted Tali to do something drastic. She slapped her cheek and screamed, "LIARA."

Liara blinked out of her state and finally breathed in the much needed air for her lungs. Curling up to her kneels, she pinned her back to the crate and reevaluated the scenario in her mind. Her silence however didn't go well with the commando next to her. Looking over to Tali, he insisted that they retreat and call for a pickup.

"She's gone!" He pointed to the stone look Liara was now forming on her face.

Tali refused to believe Liara was giving up so suddenly. Ignoring his comment, the woman popped over behind cover and fired her own weapon.

Garrus was lucky enough to catch half of what was going on. Ducking behind a rocky formation that allowed for him to snatch a glimpse of the fight, he noticed Liara was covered in blood. "Shit!"

With the rifle in hand, Garrus twisted himself just enough from cover to get a quick pot shot at the Prime who didn't budge from the hit. Another high pitch whining alerted the Commando to take cover as the shot erupted and glowed luminously through its travel from the weapon to the crate.

The slug hit hard, melting away most of their cover as sparks flew and fell to the ground.

The yelling, shouting and the cacophony of weapons going off at once didn't bring Liara out from her state. She sat there, quietly thinking of her life through all that it was.

Her lips curled tentatively, tasting the blood that was not hers. Pooling her strength and will power together, she glanced up over to her shoulder and found Tali beside her, firing her weapon.

Picking up the assault rifle from the ground, Liara brushed herself next to Tali, signaling her she was back in the fight as she cycled in another thermal clip into the magazine. Secretly, Tali grinned beneath the visor as she clipped back the shaft of the weapon, ejecting a tube of the thermal clip out and slamming in another one.

"We need to get out of here!" Voiced the male Quarian through the shouting of his weapon.

Liara didn't hesitate and brought up her biotics. The purple flaring glow of the biotics rushed to her hand as she picked up a trooper who was closing in on their position. With one thrust of her hand, the biotic twisted the troop and flung it directly into the path of the Prime. The Prime briefly stumbled, but it was enough to lower it's weapon for Garrus to sneak in a shot.

The shot was successful enough to cripple the shields, allowing Tali to erode away at the armor plating of its head.

Liara carefully aimed for the antenna and fired a short burst. There was a small chance for her to hit the antenna with success, but when she heard the growling of the Prime, she looked to find the antenna was snapped off.

The Turian sharpshooter notice that the Prime was stumbling around and losing this battle. The other Geth that was troubled by his actions on the perch were now focusing their attention on them. Even the Armature was about to get some action soon if they couldn't get the Prime to die.

Swallowing the air, Garrus leaped out from cover and carefully aimed for the Prime's central systems. The head. Pulling hard on the trigger caused a hard kick, nearly sending the Turian falling over if it wasn't for the rocky wall behind him.

The projectile slug rammed itself perfectly square into the circular white light, smashing it and slicing straight through.

A resounding hiss followed with sparks jutting out like blood. The Prime took a few more steps, firing its weapon wildly in any direction before tumbling over like a titan of the Greek myths.

"Good shot!" Tali felt the need to throw some verbal compliments but the commandos found they were still stuck in cover.

"Not good enough." One of them reminded before pointing to the Armature that was charging its main weapon. Liara caught a glimpse of the Armature and knew this was the perfect time to fire that missile launcher. "You." Her voice thicken with authority as she pointed the finger at the man she needed.

"Fire the missile." He obeyed without a moment's hesitation, bringing about the weapon from behind, he demand attention for the Armature who now looked directly at him.

Garrus provided the necessary cover fire but little was needed when the missile fired with a brilliant white flash. The missile flared in the air, creating a vapor trail as it left the bay. It finally struck the leg of the Armature, destroying the leg. The Armature wasn't done completely but it bought Liara's team enough time to reorganize and reevaluate their plan.

Running across the small space that separated them, Garrus managed to meet up with the rest of the team. He notice a spat of blood was near the cover that the Quarian's originally took cover. A frown resided on his face as he gave a sorrowful look to the two remaining Quarian commandos. "Forgive me."

The alpha male inquired no such apology with a wave of the hand. "No time for that now." He stated clearly.

"Liara, what now?" Tali inquisitive question kicked Liara's head about to see them all. "Now we make it to the AA tower." Locking her eyes on Garrus, she hoped that the Turian male did his best in taking out most while the plan went reverse on them. "How many Geth remain at the entrance of the tower?"

A brief image burned into his retina as he recounted at least a dozen remaining. "Ten, maybe twelve."

A vexed sigh came from the Quarian male who shuffled his weapon in his arms. "I don't like that we need to keep mowing them down just to get to this tower."

If they had more Quarian marines, this wouldn't be such a hassle but that Armature was still working. The missile allowed them to give them time to make a run for it but it was risky. Even as the male peaked behind cover, he could see it was calling out for engineers to repair it. Thankfully none of them were there to help.

Guessing he'll need to give some kudos to the Turian for doing something right.

Liara nodded, understanding what just happened with their comrade. "We can't quit now." She reminded them.

"We're almost there. We need to keep pushing."

Cycling in a new thermal clip, Garrus was with her on that. "The Migrant Fleet is counting on us. Let's not fail them." He said, glancing to the Quarian commandos who also agreed with that statement.

"Keelah se'lai" They both said in unison.

Exhaling her final ounce of air, Liara looked over behind the cover and notice the Armature was still down. However the head wheeled in search for its prey. "We'll need to make a run for it." She said, her voice straining with adrenaline now.

Coming back down into cover, she'll cover their rear as they move on ahead and take the rest of the Geth out. "I can form a biotic shield incase the Armature decides to fire."

Such a strategy didn't exactly energized the bunch. Not even Tali liked the idea of running pass a wounded Armature. They were like beasts, once blood was tasted, they needed to kill. However her doubts were push aside when Garrus and the other Quarian's looked like they could handle the brush pass death dash.

"Will the shield hold?" Garrus asked. "Hopefully." Liara answered with a feign smirk of hers.

"Okay." Figuring there was no other way to reach the AA tower, Garrus, Tali and the rest of the commando's complied.

Liara herself didn't feel this plan was wholesome or bullet proof. Yet Shepard faired far better in more ridiculous situations that she remembered. There were plans that would have received a laugh amongst her team now had she told them what Shepard had done. But they worked, despite how crazy they were.

Raising a hand with three fingers lifted, they waited until the countdown went zero. Liara lifted her head just enough for her eyes to catch the sight of the struggling Armature. The size was big, but not as big as that of a Colossus. Thanking the Goddess it wasn't a Colossus, Liara dropped the third finger, then the second.

Garrus's dug his feet into the earth while Tali maneuvered herself just behind his back. The remaining commandos lifted themselves just aside Liara, prepared to make their rush towards the tower.

The moment the last digit fell, Liara vaulted over the crate with one weapon in hand and a biotically charged in the other.


	11. All Rounds Expended

_Mass Effect _and characters do not belong to me.

Author's Notes: It's been a while but I have been quite busy recently, so here is another chapter! I realize that these few chapters do in fact deviate from the actual game, though I wanted a wider berth than strictly following a more linear foundation than what was represented in the game.

On another note, thank you everyone for the reviews. A few criticism is much needed for me as I know I needed to improve upon a few areas in my writing. Hopefully this chapter shows it. Also a warning for some violence and mild language! Enjoy the chapter.

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**Chapter 11 —** All Rounds Expended (Storming Rannoch Part II)_  
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"Doctor T'Soni." A whispered voice called out for the Asari woman who had her back turned and her eyes focused on the task of her omni-tool. She didn't look at first, her attention narrowed by the task and her fingers dancing with a paced rhythm that matched her thoughts.

It was only then did the warmth of a hand curiously brought her out of the trance. Lured eyes traced their careful gaze to the person who sought her attention, good manners hammered in at a young age prompted a smile about the Asari woman, sharing her teeth and a dimple or two on the side of her cheeks. When she finally turned to face the person, her first words were, "Yes?"

A Turian, no taller than five foot nine stood before her, mandibles twitching against a smile that grained with their 'lips'. "Hello Doctor, here is your permit for Area 435 as you requested." He handed her the permit chip with Liara promptly nodding to him in thanks.

Raising the chip into the light, she could not believe that she managed to get a permit! Her doubts erased and the lacking enthusiasm returned as she slid the chip into one of her many pockets. "Now," she said, grinning with glee. "I should see about hiring someone to take me there."

The crowded market didn't exactly allow for complete privacy. Even now as she looked about to find herself amongst a sea of strange and colorful faces. Each with their own personal problems and business that was attended with at brisk pace. Her fingers slipped into one of her pockets of the brown rustic colored dust jacket as she begin her walk down the plaza.

Her eyes became distant with mild curiosity, looking about the various items for display and on sale. One could see the many races that had not joined the Council. Particularly that of Batarians who were equally feared in the Terminus Systems were as peaceful as ever here. Walking amongst them, she did not feel threatened by leering eyes or suspicious looks. Instead, Liara was welcomed with many hellos and few hateful speeches about her and the skin she was born into.

Making her way across the markets, she spotted a strange object suspended in the air. It was spherical in shape and imperfect. For whatever reason, her muscles did not avoid to grant her wishes to look.

Standing before the object, she noticed it spinning above a small platform that allowed for it to stay in the air. The merchant who stood by was already dealing with another customer, his brain not registering that of Liara whose analytical brain questioned the object.

She tilted her head and her lips puckered, a finger lifted and drew close to the spherical object. The edge of her finger gently made contact with the object and when she did, an electrical pulse shot up through her arm to which she reactively jerked her finger away.

"Ow!" Wincing with pain, Liara smirked at the resulting consequences of her curiosity.

The object however begun to spin, first slowly then when she blinked, it grew in speed. The imperfect material of the object steadily eroded into a more perfected shape. Raising a concern for the object and hoping she didn't accidentally break it, she turned to the owner. Only, he wasn't there.

No one was.

She turned, her face drawing great concern as she looked about widely with worry. The streets were empty and the voices of great chatter had vanished.

"What's going on?" She asked to anyone who was in earshot of her. There wasn't a response… except for the device that she turned her back to.

Her gaze narrowed, her vision becoming ever more clear and present as she looked into the spinning sphere. The sun gleamed off the now smooth surface with a flint of glare causing Liara to hesitate to look directly at it. For several seconds, she was aware of the strange warmth crawling up the length of her arm; the same arm she used to touch the object earlier. Oddly, the feeling faded in mere seconds, allowing her attention and questioning thoughts to abode of the spherical object before her.

To her astonishment, the reflection in the sphere gave way to a blurring figure. However it was that not of her own shape. Tentatively, she raised a finger and stretched out on a quest to taste the object once more with the pad of her finger. The closer her finger came to the object, the more she could see the figure becoming something else. Someone else.

With a gentle touch, the sphere suddenly stopped. The figure in the reflection also seem to match Liara's head movements and twitching muscles of fascination.

"What is… happening?" Her voice trailed, her thoughts impaired by a sudden attractive look in the perfect shape of the sphere. Her mind became clouded, her arm that she touched the sphere with ached with pain, causing her to wince at the pulsing pain throbbing up the arm and shoulder.

The figure meanwhile was no longer matching her movements. A truly strange phenomenon that caught the Doctor's attention as she stood there cradling her arm. Her educated mind could not debunk what exactly was going on, outside from possibly taking a hallucinogenic drug to death.

Though how could it be both when the pain was too real? She looked to her arm and found the purple substance covering her forearm. "What?" She breathed and ran a finger against the blood. It was warm to the touch.

Without noticing it, the sphere suddenly began to move counter-clock wise. Her head flew back and her eyes widen at the sight. She swiveled her head about, her lips curling with frustration and fear. "What is going on? I demand an answer!" She cried out, side stepping away from the sphere.

The answers she sought would soon be answered by a familiar voice. "Liara."

The Doctor spun about, her hand instinctively hovering over the omni-tool that evolved out from her unharmed arm. "Who is that?" She asked, her eyes frantically darting everywhere but they fell back on the sphere rotating in front of her.

"Liara." It spoke again, the voice deeper and louder.

"Come out!" She raised the omni-tooled arm, prepared to give a neural shock that would paralyze her enemies temporarily.

"Get up." The voice commanded with her now gazing at the sphere. The figure in the reflection was blurry again but with one step and an inch closer, Liara notice something strange.

A tattooed brow furrowed with her lip synching in confusion. The figure's identity was slowly becoming clear. "Who… who are you?" She asked.

Her question did not hear of an answer as she gazed attentively to the sphere. The shadowed figure, hidden amongst the rotating glare of the sun had surfaced. It was her mother - Benezia. "Mo-mother?"

A hellish shriek pierced her ears, forcing her to jerk herself away from the sphere as the pain returned full force.

She stumbled to the ground, her arm flailing to the side and her head laying over, the warm blood oozing casually from her nose, trickling down aside her lips and onto the soft dirt that caught her fallen body.

"GET UP LIARA." The scream and the high pitching wailing collided to which Liara felt forced the lids of her eyes to close.

Both lids flew open, revealing a metallic world above her. The lungs beneath her chest resurrected again with air as she flew her arms above to catch the crashing iron world.

The Geth trooper who believed according to its parameters and coding was advised to kill weakened opponents. It however did not see this event coming and drew the ocular lens down to find the Asari female was alive. An electronic whine fleeted out from the Geth's head then went about with another commanded program. It lowered it's weapon directly over Liara's face with the digit finger sliding into the folding of the trigger guard.

Seeing this, Liara acted with hostile intentions. Her arm drew beneath the leg then curved at the ankle of the leg. The familiar wisp of biotics flared around her balling fist before ramming it into the ankle of the Geth. Hearing the satisfying crack of metal under her knuckles, she then gripped the wires that weaved around the cabling beam before yanking it out with brute force. Gray goo slithered down along the fine plating of Liara's greave, exposing the 'blood' of this machine to the existing world. The Geth received the immediate diagnosis of the problem and found that its bipedal state would no longer be functioning as it faltered back to the earth.

"Tali! Look!" Garrus thrusted a finger to the conscious Liara beside the crater that was made for her. The Quarian engineer huffed and grinned beneath her visor as she picked a clear shot at the Geth falling back. The head exploded to a joyful resolution on Liara's end. "Bosh'tet!"

Waving to Liara, Garrus hoped to gain the good Doctor's attention before the next wave would over run her. "Liara! Get over here!" He shouted urgently.

Groaning with pain, she rolled over onto her good arm and glanced up at the walls that impounded her body from moving much further. Voices were calling out, names of her birth name frantically yelled for her attention; something Liara could only guess that it was Garrus.

Another Geth peered out from cover and aimed for the belly up Asari with its assault rifle. A mistake that the Quarian commando notice and took immediate aim. With one pull, the Geth lost more than its head. The report shocked Liara to push herself off from the ground, only now the earth was spinning a thousand degrees around her.

"She's not going to make it." Tali echoed the very thoughts that hammered in on Garrus. Pulling out his pistol, he vaulted over from cover.

The Turian sharpshooter didn't have enough air to expended on a order that was already working to the Quarian's. To a symphony of gunfire, the remaining commandos and Tali gave Garrus the much needed covering fire. The Geth saw this as an act of foolishness and reacted harshly by firing blindly at the running Turian.

Dirt, grass and hell was shaking Garrus's world as he dodged the fiery blue streaks that were meant for him. Ducking his head underneath Liara's armpit, he helped her to the weakened feet that did not support the woman fully. "I got you Liara." The reassuring turians small talk meant only little to Liara who was trying to regain her bearings in the middle of a firefight.

Tali noticed a sharpshooter perched on a canyon wall, close by the arched halls of the valley that they had left for earlier. To her disappointment and cursing, she had no weapon that could deal with the range and distance. The two commando's however were lucky enough to bring an rifle with a scope. He too noticed the shooter and aimed.

Hammered poundings could be felt across his back, the shielding was becoming weak at a quick rate. He was exposed and Garrus knew it. Without an option, Garrus turned about face and push Liara into the direction that was closest to their line. The pistol that drew rang out shots, one for the Geth taking pot shots at him and another that was prepared to toss an explosive fragmentation grenade. The monocle headset set up the perfect shot for the Turian and with one pull, that Geth lost a hand along with that brilliant idea of the grenade. A primeval sound of chaos erupted around the Geth who carried the grenade as dirt and chunks of metal flew in a multitude of directions.

To Garrus's brief bliss, another squad of more Geth emerged from the cloud of mayhem and misery with their weapons at the ready.

Plate burrowing in annoyance, he clipped by the frame of the weapon and injected another tubing of a thermal clip. "Assholes!"

One Geth seemingly caught the friendly insult and aimed for the Turian. The rifle carried by the trooper was a Geth rifle, easily distinguishable by the rotund shape of the frame. The first few shots struck against the hardened shielding of his armor, causing Garrus to stumble a bit back.

Any other species (aside from the Krogan of course) would've had the air knocked out of them, but Garrus looked straight at his target and grinned as he took aim and fired two shots. The first shot disabled the shields with the second one sounded to Garrus's hymn of violence with grey matter exploding gloriously in the air.

Tali meanwhile was madly padding down Liara in search for wounds. The battle armor she wore protected her from the most brutal of shots by the Armature. If it was a direct hit however, their friend Liara would have been vaporized from the torso up. A gruesome way to die that Tali at the moment was not even thinking about.

The Asari doctor however tried to quell any doubts in the Quarian woman's mind about any injuries. "I'm fine." She assured with her hand firmly interjecting between Tali's frantic search for wounds.

"No you're not!" She retorted, pushing the blue hand away. "You're bleeding from your arm, the armor plating is loose and it appears to be a serious wound." Her fast talking was muffled by the riotous roar of gunfire from all around, how she was still able to hear Tali was nothing less of a miracle, considering all things that everything sounded muffled now.

"Get over here you Bosh'tet!" One of the Quarian commandos yelled for Garrus. Supporting fire was only making a dent at the reinforcing Geth and Garrus was not going to last long against the hail of bullets charging at him in the form of a thousand streaking arrows.

Hearing the obvious advice, Garrus fired a few more shots before running back behind cover and next to Tali.

"Are you all right, Liara?" The concerning Turian asked with his eyes never leaving the Geth encroaching on their line.

"Yes, I am." Liara spoke affirmatively. "Tali, please, I am okay." Seeing that she would not be able to see the extent of the wound while under fire, Tali shrugged herself away from Liara and gave her an approving nod. "Fine."

"I hate to be the bearer of bad news, but how are we going to get out of here?" The Quarian commando asked as he snuck in behind cover again.

Liara looked over, wondering what they have done with the tower. "Did we disable the tower?"

The Quarian male nodded, "yes ma'am."

That was all she had to hear, smiling to him, she shared a couple of passive-aggressive words that motivated the remaining commandos to stay alive. "We hold."

"And this is where we look like a pair of damn heroes!" Garrus thought aloud, dragging the sniper rifle out from the magnetic holster of his armor. Tali huffed and recycled a new thermal clip into her weapon as the commandos nodded in agreement to eachother.

The setting of the sun did not snuff out the light, across the unique mountain formations, Rannoch was set ablaze with fire. Streaks of blue and red intermingled, striking hard against solid impenetrable surfaces as whining screams of Geth fell to the earth; their last cry of this world was that of error or malfunction. Above the huddled squad, the Normandy was standing by, stealth drives operational and in orbit around Rannoch.

Scuffling feet marched and paced in and around the CIC, faces etched with a stoicism that matched the professional value that the Alliance were known for under the heat of war. Words were exchanged and hands were gestured, giving orders to the next command that went down from the second in command of the Normandy.

In the war room, Admiral Shala'Raan was speaking with the Admiral who took over fleet operations at Rannoch. Her visor hid the true face that drew out fangs, lustful for blood as she shoved her hand at the holographic figure of Admiral Han'Gerrel. "You need to pull back the Heavy Fleet now! We can disable the Geth with precision, not with the cost of more quarians!"

He shrugged the authoritative order, finding that he was well within his right to hold ground.

"This is our Homeworld, not the humans and certainly not the Geth! Our means of winning this war is by defeating the Geth head strong."

Han'Gerrel was the more troublesome Quarian who found his way to the top of the Admiralty board. Ever since the incident near the Turian border, he had be the more hotheaded figure who strives for violence instead of peace, even with other species. His saying was: If no one will understand a Quarian, then we will make them understand.

A page ripped straight from the manifest of the krogans. The downside to that manifest was that the quarians were not the most suitable in fighting. No less against Reapers.

"You're not understanding it, Gerrel." Shala'Raan argued, her legs taking her around the circular holographic display table with a mean spirit. "We have people down there in the process of disabling anti-aircraft batteries. This will give us a chance to send in reinforcements and take out the communication hub."

It was a sound plan, even with the Normandy stealth drives on, AA towers manned by Geth would see the ship flying. No use for targeting systems. That was why she agreed with Shepard in disabling the towers, allowing them to move in and disable the communication tower. The tower was a vital construct that used Reaper technology, it was one more reason Shepard was inclined to join this fight. One more reason to remove the Reapers from this conflict.

Waving a passive hand, the Admiral didn't see it her way. In fact, he believed that she was being tricked by that Geth oddity called Legion. "You do not see it Shala'Raan! It is trying to fool you into believing you have a chance to win."

She didn't know Legion all to well to trust it. But Tali did and so did most of the crew of the Normandy. How could she turn her back now when Shepard himself had put aside his own Homeworld in his efforts to save theirs?

"When you have your back turn, it will betray you in less than a nano-second. Are you willing to place that much trust. The trust of the Migrant Fleet in the hands of a Geth?"

"Right now, I would rather trust it than you!" Cursing beneath her breath, she hovered her head over the console, threatening to disconnect the arguably annoying Admiral. If only she didn't hold back when Han'Gerrel raised his arms in support of his defense.

"Wait!" A desperate Admiral shouted. "Just wait."

Admiral Shala'Raan tilted the omni-illuminated tool slightly as she stood by, wondering what he wanted to say.

The defeated Gerrel looked down, stubbornly chewing at his lips beneath the visor that hid much but little of the eyes that shot up back to Raan. "If you think it can be done."

Shala'Raan argued with an affirmative nod. "They can get it done."

Gerrel tilted his head, not wishing to get in with another argument with Raan. It was enough that his view on attacking the Geth had become a futile debate amongst many of the Admirals. It would be even more distressing if he decided to put personal pride ahead of surviving this war. "Very well." He agreed, defeat echoing in his tone.

"I will pull back the heavy fleet, they will protect the civilian fleet."

There was a heed of warning that followed up with his agreement. Flicking a standing finger in defiance, he warned her of what would happen should Shepard fail. "Remember Raan. If he loses, we will lose nearly third of our Migrant Fleet. The consequences will be on you."

It was a gamble. A large gamble at that. Even Admiral Shala'Raan was taken a bit by the ever so defensive Gerrel. Yet as she looked at the holographic representation of the man, she could see he was willing to put aside his differences in favor of the fleet.

But that also meant placing trust in an alien named Shepard and a Geth named Legion.

Could she trust them? She trusted Shepard so far but not the same way she did with Legion.

Was it a flaw? A fault of her own to place her trust in a Human? Even at that, Han'Gerrel was willing, if anything, placing much of the Quarian fleet in the hands of an alien.

Before this war, before the Reapers. She did not hear about this Shepard. This first Human Spectre. She believed as every other Quarian believed about these species that Shepard was born into were naïve about the galaxy. Stubborn as the Krogan. She had never met a Human before until Shepard showed up personally in support of Tali during the trial hearings.

He was modest and very polite. He didn't look down upon the quarians as the filth at the bottom of one's boot, vagrants ready to steal their next meal. What she saw in that Human allowed for her to tear down the prejudice walls that she had about them. Over the course of months leading to the Reaper invasion, Tali had much to talk about Shepard.

She would say he was the man who saved her more than once. Numerous times where he had placed himself in danger in an effort to save hers. Even when he joined Cerberus, he refuse to acknowledge he was Cerberus. He was a man with no affiliation but his own. He even rejected Spectre status from the Council when they offered it to him.

One day, she asked Tali why this man was special to her. The Quarian engineer shrugged but smiled beneath her mask. "Shepard did more for me and everyone than the Council could have done in a hundred years."

She quipped that he is just one man. Tali responded politely, not finding any offense with the Admiral's statement about the Commander. "He is one man," she agreed.

"And that is all we need." The image of Liara flickered again, finishing Tali's sentence as her face drew to her unknown audience before her.

"Tali told me that story when she joined the Normandy. She held a lot of faith in Shepard and what reason should she not? He bailed her out from certain exile, upheld the honor of her father and saved her countless of times during our missions."

Shuffling her hands together, Liara was reminded again as to why the Galaxy needed a person like Shepard. She did not know at the time whether or not they would live to see another sunrise on their respective homeworlds. To eat and sleep again as they did before the invasion. Fear was the common infection that spread like a wildfire from star port to star port. Countless of thousands saw only death in the Reapers, not salvation or freedom.

"Shepard saw himself not as a hero. He did not see himself as a symbol." Quietly, the Asari doctor shook her head. "He was a soldier. He fought to protect those he cared for. He fought for his homeworld and he fought for us."

A slow nod rose out from the gentle shaking of the head, seeing the image of Shepard in her mind. "When the Galaxy was divided, he was there to unite us all. He doesn't know it, but Shepard…." her eyes trailed away from the recording capsule, her voice followed. A faint whisper of the Commander's name was barely audible to the audience below.

"Without him," she added, fingers cupping her chin for support. "This war would have gone very differently."

Bringing her gaze back, she curled a smile to the audience, knowing that if they did not succeed in this cycle, they will now in the next. "I am not saying that you need a Shepard like we did. No."

She knew that what they needed was far from Shepard or even the Crucible itself. Adjusting herself on the chair, Liara then leaned in, her face etched with a more serious tone as she ran her lips together. "Just be united when the time comes."

The soft round cheeks fell only against the slight curve of a frown, dissolving the gravity of her more stoic possession of her emotions. "It is a shame we did not come together when the time had come. I hope… we are not too late."

"My last clip!" Tali's voice rang out through the shattering volume of gunfire as she tossed one of her last remaining thermal clips over to the Quarian commando. The Commando snatched it out from the sky and inserted the clip into his rifle, cycling the cylinder to accept the newly injected thermal clip.

Garrus fired his own last round from his sniper rifle, the recoil of the weapon jumped slightly in his hand but held it still as he looked through the scope. More were still coming.

"They are not pulling back." Their situation was growing dire by the second. Liara knew that much from the look Garrus was giving her behind the collar of his armor. They couldn't give up now. Not now that they were this close.

Snarling at her weapon, she kicked in a new thermal clip and popped out from cover to fire a few more rounds at the encroaching Geth troopers. Each shot echoed with a kick of the rifle, a cacophony of sounds sang to the song of violence as the projectiles themselves exploded out from the muzzle of the rifle with fierce velocity.

The skirmish must have lasted over thirty minutes, their time here was waning desperately and Liara was growing weary of their survival odds. Even now, she looked up in hopes that Steve - the Kodiak pilot - would swoop down and save them all.

For all she knew, the situation had gone to hell above them and Shepard could have died. A pessimistic thought that Liara never gave in to think about as she pulled hard on the trigger and unleashed a volley of burst rounds into one of the Spitfire Geth soldiers.

The Armature that was briefly disabled by a rocket attack was being repaired by several Geth engineers in an attempt to bolster their attack on the remaining enemies. When Liara was providing cover with her biotic shield, the shot from the Armature's pulse cannon had thrown her across the field, knocking her unconscious and wounded. Garrus managed to get a clean shot at ocular head in hopes that it would send it in a dizzying frenzy of confusion.

Seeing it lying in a pile of metal made Garrus believe it was down for good. But that wasn't so now that the Geth engineers were repairing it in a rush.

"We need to take out those engineers!" The hard-boiled Quarian engineer advice, firing a few pot shots at the engineers, failing to hit any of them.

Garrus nodded and holstered his sniper rifle in exchange for a Predator pistol. It was a good decent pistol, used widely across the Galaxy. The only downside was it's lack of punch against Geth.

It didn't matter though when the odds were against you. Not even for Turian who tried to get a clear shot at the engineers. The other Geth were making it near impossible to pull out from cover to fire with aim. Everyone were firing blindly at the Geth, hitting one or two with luck rather than actual skill.

Cursing beneath her breath, Liara could feel the heat of the Geth slowly coming towards their line of defense. If that line broke, there was no telling how they could get out of this one alive.

Reaching out to tug on Garrus's shoulder, Liara hoped to get an answer out from the Turian who was far too busy wasting ammo than killing anything. "Did you get a hold of Shepard?"

The Turian looked to her calmly, a void that she only saw once in the turians face before. The mandibles of either side of his face twitched as he said, "I can't reach him."

The Asari doctor looked on with a defeated gaze, the tattoo brows over the outlets of her eyes furrowed together; was this the end?

She flicked her weapon over the railing of the cover, firing burst rounds at the Geth. The action that was displayed prompted Garrus to do the same, hoping in the best of hopes that they could evacuate from here before they were overrun.

An explosion echoed across, shocking Liara out from the lulling state of mind as she pinned herself against the eroding cover. Garrus, Tali and the remaining Quarian commandos were opening firing, their efforts proving futile against the overwhelming waves of Geth.

Ejecting the overheated cylindrical clip, she then padded over her hip at the munitions pockets that were strapped around. Her fingers flipped over the protective sheath, sliding in to the pocket in hopes of finding a fresh clip.

She was empty.

"I'm out!" She shouted, turning a worried look to Garrus who kneeled down just as several shots streaked across just above the fringes of his skull.

He looked to her and shook his head, he was out too.

When Tali's last rounds were all but expended, she resorted to using her drone and draining the Geth's shields in hopes that it would be enough for her drone to strike at them. The Quarian commandos themselves were in not in any easier spot as they were.

As it was, the battle was turning against them.

The Armature had picked itself up, thanks in part by the Geth engineers who repaired its onboard systems. The only thing they couldn't repair was the damaged leg. Which was a good thing as it couldn't cover much ground. The bad thing was that it's pulse canon was going to knock them out from cover.

Liara scanned from the protective covering of the metallic walls, hoping to get an advantage with her biotics to cause some havoc, a tactic to buy as much time as possible. She dropped the weapon in exchange for her naked fists that balled with flaring purple biotics. The biotics webbed around her arm excitedly as her eyes narrowed in on a specific target; the Geth Spitfire.

With one shot, a biotic reave ripped the Geth apart, causing a chaotic explosion that caught the attention however briefly of the troopers. The napalm chemical built inside the chamber of the flame throwing weapon spat out like rich venom, coating several of the troopers in the clear gathering. Seeing the opportunity, Garrus took aim with his Predator and fired two shots which flinted the napalm chemical into brilliant flames.

It wasn't much from where Liara was crouched. Seeing the troopers dance to the flames chewing at their armor was just enough for Garrus to take shots at them while they weren't shooting. Each of the Geth fell one by one in accordance to the report of the turians pistol.

The Quarian sniggered at the sight, knowing full well these Geth were going to lose a lot more against the remaining four organics. Yet as many of them saw it, the Geth were not retreating. Nor were they simply going to give up.

Annoyed by how this battle was turning, Liara pinned her back behind cover and looked to her omni-tool for suggestions.

There had to be a way out of here, a fleeting thought insisted.

The doctor struggled with her jaw clenched and fingers pouncing the orange set tool of her forearm. Each tap was met with a resounding and definitive negative response. There was no clear route to escape and the possibility of dying was growing by each second.

The blood from her arm had slowly soaked most of the shoulder and forearm plates; small droplets of purple blood dripping quietly against the backdrop of primeval cries and hissing whines of electronics.

Pulse rounds slammed into the earth, kicking up dirt and chocking it in every which direction, reminding those of their imminent demise. By now, no one was shooting. Liara looked from her omni-tool to find the Turian sharpshooter, the Quarian female engineer and the Quarian Commandos had resorted to using their omni-tools in an attempt to hold what little was left of their defenses.

The Geth's intentions were to root out the remaining organics, including the creators. This was a fight that will be fought inch by inch if need be, and none of them; including Liara could see that this fight will end as easily as any one hoped.

Clutching at Garrus's collar, she brought the taut nerved Turian down to her level. Their eyes made contact and she drew her finger off to the rear of their position. "If we need to pull back, this will be the last line of defense against the Geth!"

Garrus flinched at the thought of retreating more but what choice were the Geth giving them? "We're out of ammo, Liara! We will be forced to fight with our fists." Garrus delivered the line apathetically, detached by the sense of their soon to come demise. He was acting on adrenaline, instinct of one's will to continue pushing even if death was staring them down.

Of course, Garrus was also trying to draw out another problem to their currently ever eroding situation. No ammo meant no way to attack the Geth properly. This prompted Liara to smirk before rightly correcting the Turian. "Then we will use biotics, hacks. Whatever we have!"

Garrus wasn't stunned by the quick thinking Liara. In fact, he was more impressed by how fast she matured on the field of battle. Before, he would have been hesitant to give any room for her to handle a weapon. No less lead a squad of her own. Yet as countless skirmishes and missions have shown, Liara was a proven fighter.

But that didn't mean that she could give them out in one piece. Without an evac from the peninsula, they might as well consider themselves dead. Thankfully, Liara refused the idea of death.

Releasing her grip on his collar, she joined the rest of her squad on the fight. Persistent and ever vigilant of staying alive. That was their priority now.

As minutes passed and seconds faded into the backdrop of fallen limbs of metallic construction, so did the strength of Razor squad. Tali's suit was punctured numerous of times by shrapnel and her suit was barely managing to keep the Quarian alive. The remaining Quarian commandos also fell prey to the flaws of their suit.

Garrus and Liara however were blessed to have been born on other worlds but they themselves were no better off. Liara was hindered by her wounds, having to resort to her omni-tool in shocking some of the Geth that were flanking and having Garrus finish them off with a quick saw of his omni-blade.

One of the Geth troopers however managed to out flank their defenses to get close enough to draw up its weapon to Tali. She was busy mentoring to one of the Commandos' about using a combat drone, not realizing the Geth trooper was standing just inches away. Liara caught the sight of gun-metal gray against the twilight evening and tried to stop the act of violence against the unbeknownst Quarian engineer.

Struggling to raise her arm in defense with purple flaring biotics, Liara was too far to stop the Geth from firing on Tali. Even spoken words were useless when Tali herself saw the shadow hovering over her, flicking her head to the Geth, she looked down the barrel of the pulse rifle.

Tali was sure to herself that she was seeing her death coming to life, as her eyes closed and her heart solemnly slowed to a easier pace, Tali braced for a quick swift death.

A distorted shriek pierced the atmosphere, causing those with hears to flinch at the white burst sight.

"Holy Sh-" A delirious Garrus said out loud who was hunkered down next to Liara.

It was no hallucination that what they saw was Shepard manning the door gun of the Kodiak, firing furiously into the Geth who were being trampled by projectiles. Limbs ripped apart, torsos and heads exploded with gray matter joyously spraying in all directions.

The holographic representation of Liara smiled, her brow furrowing and her finger tapping gently to the tune of the weapon that fired repeatedly into the Geth army below.

Shepard, bloodied and pissed, kept both fingers clutched against the trigger as the recoil unleashed a plethora of anti-material rounds into the Geth. The Armature however was standing just feet away from the onslaught and aimed its pulse cannon directly at the Kodiak.

Tali - the Quarian engineer of the squad - promptly went to work on the Armature. The omni-tool of her forearm cascaded across, allowing for the female Quarian to tap her eager fingers to send a virus to the Geth Armature to which it had stunned it momentarily.

The confusion of its targeting system made the Armature look drunk, stumbling on its remaining working legs before eradicating the creator virus from its systems. By the time it did get a good target on the organic vessel floating in the air, it was looking directly down the barrel of the door gun.

Shepard held down the trigger long enough for the projectile bullets to rip the Armature's ocular head right off, leaving only a smirking grin to replace the disdain look on the Commander when the deed was done.

When the smoke had cleared and the violence had ceased, the Kodiak that was piloted by Steve Cortez began its landing procedures on the peninsula. Liara was the first to make her way to the vessel as Shepard himself stepped out with a weapon at the ready.

"All clear?" He asked, eyes dancing about the area.

Liara nodded with her thumb pointing south of her of the Geth mess Shepard created. "That was all of them."

Garrus, Tali and the remaining Quarian commandos who were pulling each other up made their way to the Kodiak. Shepard could see it on their faces that they've went through some hell here, not that he could guess it was any worse than what he was dished with.

"Good, we need to move."

Liara agreed, she found Rannoch to be a nice vacation spot, if only the Geth were here in such numbers as she battled against. "We have one casualty." She said, flicking her gaze over to one of the remaining Commandos who were helped aboard the Kodiak. "One of the Quarian commandos died, and I believe several of us are wounded."

He grimaced when he heard of the first KIA of the evening, finding that it was never easy to know you lost one under your command. Shepard eased himself closer to Liara and offered out a hand of sympathy to her.

"You did good, Liara."

She peeled her eyes to him, wishing to know what they did here was worth the price. "I could have done better."

It wasn't less than a moment after that Legion decided to interrupt the couple by interceding with a reminder.

"Shepard Commander,"

"Yes, Legion?"

"It is strongly recommended that we leave this area. The Geth will return to repair the anti-aircraft batteries. I have offered the pilot Steve to target the weak points of the tower with the Kodiak weapons to permanently disable them."

That was their cue. Liara half-heartedly smiled to Shepard when the man returned his attention to her, but their talk would be put in the back burner for now as they holstered their weapons and returned back into the Kodiak.

Liara took a seat next to Tali and left no words to dispel the stress of the adrenaline that has cumulated. Not that she could see to share a few words with the Quarian female as she was busy patching herself up. She knew that minor inflictions of Quarian environmental suits took a lot out of them to repair. If left untreated, then it was to be said that she was out of the game.

It was best that she relayed her thoughts elsewhere, preferably to herself in silence.

Binding her fingers together, Liara kneeled her head and licked the dry cracked lips, eager to seek water to quench her thirst.

Shepard who was holding with one hand of the ceiling handles looked to find the Asari doctor reclusive in her spot. She had ignored the world within the Kodiak, even the blood that trickled out silently in tune from her forearm plates. It was as though she no longer cared what had happened to her, despite a successful mission.

He tilted his head to one side and let go of the handles to make his way over to her. "Liara?"

Her thoughts were transfixed on the metal plating beneath her soles. Words from beyond her cranial ear were left unheard until she felt the warmth of a hand firmly laying on her shoulder. "Liara, are you okay?"

She looked up, a pseudo smile residing over the pale palette of blue. "Yes, I am."

A lie. But a lie that was meant to quell any worries for Shepard. This mission was not about her, never was. It was about giving Rannoch back to the Quarian people like Tali.

Yet, despite the lie, Liara kept a steady gaze on Shepard who was no reluctant to hand her a bottle of water. "Here, drink."

She stared at the bottle for several seconds then took it from his hands to which she began to unscrew the top. The water tantalized the Asari as she heard the liquid dance inside, swishing as her hand moved the bottle accordingly. She didn't want to look desperate in drinking the water but when she tilted it to her lips, the water had introduced Liara to whole other level of need. The smooth cool water was welcoming for her mouth, she couldn't remember the last time she even had water in her system. The battle, it felt, took several hours from her life. All those memories, those moments in time. They would never be lost to her.

Just as she never forgot every other missions. It was another scar that was etched into her back since she joined Shepard on this voyage to cleanse the galaxy of Reapers. When will it end - if ever?

When she finished, she handed the bottle back to Shepard who raised his palm and shook his head at the return of the water bottle. "No, keep it." He insisted.

"You sure?" She asked quietly, fingers tapping against the metal rim of the bottle.

"Yes."

Pointing to instead of her wounded arm, Shepard insisted that he check it out.

She gave a weary look then nodded. Pulling herself up against the seat, she put aside the bottle then lifted her arm high enough for Shepard to take hold of gently. His finger ran along the seams of the armor before gliding up north of the forearm. He could see the purple substance of blood had dried up while more of it was still dripping near her underarm.

"Can you take this part off?"

She didn't bother to answer verbally, instead she placed a firm finger on a latch that was hidden from view before tugging on it. With a reaffirming click, the armor hitched and was pulled apart by her hand, leaving only the arm to be exposed to the world once again.

What Shepard saw as the armor plate was peeled away was a wound deep enough that it may have reached to her bone. How she didn't feel pain was astounding, granted she was probably on adrenaline that pain wasn't being registered at the moment.

"Not looking good." He remarked, probing the wound very gently with a finger. She winced then bit her lip as a hiss escaped from her mouth.

"Medi-gel will cover it for now. But when we get back to the Normandy, go see Dr. Chakwas."

Not knowing the full extent of the wound that Shepard was seeing, Liara bent her head over with eyes leaning out to the edge. She caught sight of the wound, blood oozing out slowly with a hint of pain stinging her when she herself poked at it.

Pulling out a syringe from his own supply of medi-gel, Shepard stopped just an inch away as he looked at Liara, offering a warning look of the pain she may feel. "This may hurt a little," he said before injecting the syringe near the wound.

Liara flinched, holding her ground from moving as Shepard went to work on her arm. When the deed was done, she pulled her arm back and looked to it again. The bleeding was already stopping but it still wasn't enough to cover up the fact she had a gash in her arm.

Garrus who was minding his own business was leering back and forth between a small screen showing Rannoch below and Liara. She looked exhausted, huddled in the corner of the Kodiak. Shepard himself didn't look all that great but he was holding on. He guessed not everyone was cut out to be a leader, but no one is ever asked to do the easy thing these days.

"Still in the fight, Liara?" The Turian sounded off, pulling out from Tali's shadow.

She looked over and gave a thumbs up - a human gesture she caught Shepard doing many times before.

Smirking, he then reeled himself back and pulled out his sniper rifle. Ejecting the cool thermal clip out, he then slammed in another clip before cycling the bolt to ensure a round was inside the chamber.

"Five minutes." Cortez reminded the crew. Legion looked over and noticed the communications construct.

"That is it." He said, flicking the small panels around his ocular light at the visual sight of the building.

It was built into the mountain side, hiding in plain view and away from prying eyes, but as the Kodiak grew closer, it was evident that it was no ordinary communications hub. Anti-aircraft batteries lined around this place, making it nearly impossible even for the Normandy to evade all at once.

"Any word on the Quarian teams?" Shepard looked over to Cortez as the man flew the Kodiak. The pilot shook his head then tapped on a omni-panel, showing the Commander the trouble that is brewing.

"Damn thing is knocking out communications. We can't reach the Normandy or Admiral Shala'Raan. I doubt we can even pick the teams down below."

"I advise we return to the Normandy, Shepard." EDI advised as she sat next to Cortez.

Shepard knew the consequences of returning back to the Normandy, this meant that more lives would be lost in the assault if they returned now. For all he knew though, the battle was already over and the quarians were retreating. There was no clear way to know. Yet as he looked back to the squad sitting in their seats, the look on all their faces were exhaustion. Liara especially who was keeping her arm stable by having it rest over her lap. Garrus was probably the only one who appeared more than ready for another fight.

Legion meanwhile decided to counter the argument of returning back to the Normandy with his own.

"Shepard Commander. We only have one chance at succeeding. If we return now, our odds of succeeding again will be greatly against us." Shepard turned and looked at the metallic Geth before him, giving him an attentive look at where he was going with this.

"The Geth will return in more numbers, building up more defenses. By the time we return, it will be impossible to attack this construct."

The Geth then stepped over towards the side door and removed the weapon holstered over his back. "I propose we attack now while the Geth are trying to prepare for a counterattack."

The Quarian female stood up and looked to Legion with a curious eye. Not sure if he was stating that what they plan to do was… crazy. "Legion, we can't do this alone. We have to wait until the fleets can mobilize a ground force to attack this fortification." Tali reminded Legion, but the Geth understood the odds of success.

"The creators have failed to stop the Geth from transmitting the Reaper signal."

She waved her hand dismissively. "No we have not, Legion!"

Legion was quiet, stoic at Tali who was becoming aggressive now.

Garrus stood up and decided to throw his own opinion around while Shepard stood near the cockpit entrance of the Kodiak, looking down to the metal hull with no signs of emotions running through his face.

"As much as I like to take the fight to the Geth. We can't possibly do this, Legion. We are outnumbered, out gun. This is suicide!"

"Legion, we will die if we try. It is best if we regroup, rearm ourselves." Tali insisted, her eyes blinking more rapidly than normal under the visor.

Legion however wasn't biting it. He found them to be only a hindrance to Shepard whose orders and commands were the only ones he obeyed for the moment.

"Shepard Commander," the Geth spoke again over the rallying cry to retreat. "Our consensus argues otherwise. We must disable this communication array now or the creators will lose more than their homeworld."

"Shepard will agree with me. We need to-"

The Commander's eyes lifted as if he discovered something of importance. The quiet demeanor of him left an impression over Tali and Garrus who stood by, watching as though they were wondering if he was going to agree with them.

"We move in now."

Tali was confused, more so now that she tried to get a better look at his face to see if he was suffering from a concussion. "Shepard?"

"Tali," he breathed her name lightly, his eyes finding her own through her visor. "Legion is right. If we return to the Normandy now, the Geth will reinforce this area more. We can only do so much with what we got. You already saw that the quarians have launched an invasion force on Rannoch. We do not know the extent of casualties we have lost."

Tali sighed but agreed none the less. Garrus however wasn't going to argue against Shepard. If they think they could do it, then he wasn't going to whine about whether or not they were going to retreat.

"Thank you Shepard Commander." Legion looked on to the Commander, his ocular light beaming with an understanding that the decision the Commander made was not a light one.

"Don't thank me yet, Legion. We still got a job to do."

"Understood."

Looking elsewhere, Shepard found Liara rather quiet than talkative like her peers. Cradling that arm of hers, Shepard wondered if she can still operate a weapon. "Liara."

The Asari doctor looked up and winced at the pain surfacing again. The adrenaline was wearing off. "Are you good to go?"

She looked to her arm, then to Shepard and gave a unknowing shrug. "I'm still breathing Shepard."

Hearing her say that caused the Commander to smirk. Knowing Liara was still in the game gave Shepard comfort in knowing that they could still do this. "We're almost done, Liara."

"I know." She breathed, holding back the pain that was her arm.

The holographic image of Liara flickered again as she moved her hand slowly across the table. "There was no doubt from Tali or Garrus or even me in what Shepard decided to do was just. We were all wounded and ammo was low between us all. Attacking a heavily fortified area was far more dangerous, exceeding the reward for the risk involved."

She then laughed, her eyes rolling to the back of her head as she leaned into her seat. When her sporadic laughing ceased, she sat there staring at the ceiling above her, reminding herself that she had never went with Shepard when they attacked the Collector's. She didn't know if Shepard was more accustomed to suicide missions or he enjoyed them.

"We were all going to find out soon enough." Liara said, her eyes returning to her audience as she then nodded to herself. "Time is waning here for me. I will continue this session later at another time."

With the hologram of Liara twitching and quantifying to another image of the Asari doctor, the audience below looked about each other and talked on today's session with Liara. Patrons of the museum were never bored by the fact that they could come here and learn about a lost history of the Reaper conflict.

Well, one couldn't say it was 'lost' history when most of the information surrounding the war was well collected. Through out the museum were rooms dedicated to different parts of the war. There was even a room that was solely on Cerberus and their betrayal to Humanity. Everyone could see the extent of the war that it had on the galaxy. From one end to another, everyone was affected by the conflict.

It took a dream and an a imagination just to see what the war must have been like. But nothing could get you closer to the drama of it than Liara's recordings. Each day, people would come and visit just to listen to her. The details about Shepard though became more of the fascinating topic.

As much as he was celebrated on Earth and elsewhere, he was viewed almost as a god - a savior to the galaxy. But Liara brought a certain level of humanity into Shepard. A reality that everyone could relate to.

For now, people had left the auditorium as the time of the museum was nearing closing hours. For now, Liara's warm smile and statue-like posture over her metallic foundation remained in silence; waiting for the next session to begin.


End file.
